Changing of the ways
by Lumpyness
Summary: Set immediately after the events of Reconciliation, this tale concludes my three-part variation on the original How to Train Your Dragon plot. Please read The Traitor and then Reconciliation before viewing this story, otherwise nothing will make sense. Rated T just in case - I personally don't have a view on age censorship, so I can't really be too cautious here.
1. Chapter One

_My friends! It is time! Part Three is here!  
_

_Now, I'm really going to have to rush to stick to my two-week update schedule this semester, so please be reasonable and patient if things don't always arrive on time!  
_

_Aside from that, I think I'll just do a quick recap of the story so far. By the way, anyone who's here and hasn't read first The Traitor and then Reconciliation should leave immediately and go to those (just find them through my profile) or risk epic spoilers!  
_

_In Part One, Astrid was training in the woods one day, when she almost attacked Hiccup by accident while the boy was on his way to..well, she had no idea, but the young woman followed him to find out.  
Astrid then discovered his secret - a Night Fury, that Hiccup had somehow befriended.  
Wild with jealousy at the boy's newfound talents at dealing with dragons, Astrid ratted Hiccup out to his own father, and Stoick then banished Hiccup from the village.  
Astrid, however, was beginning to see that perhaps what she had done was not in everyone's best interests, and was plagued by guilt and regret for the next seven years...  
_

_In Part Two, based seven years later, tensions with the other villagers, and, in particular, her parents cause Astrid to snap and leave to hunt down Hiccup alone, convinced that he is the only one who can repair the rifts developing between the village members, and perhaps even bring peace to humans and dragons in Berk.  
However, upon finding him, Astrid finds out the hard way that the boy is no longer the weak fishbone of their childhood, and is almost killed by him - only to have Toothless pull Hiccup back from the brink just in time.  
In the castle of an ancient race that was once friends with the dragons, Astrid convinces Hiccup to return with her to Berk to sort out the various issues there, but now begins to question her own motives for doing so.  
Flying with Toothless, who has stayed by Hiccup's side and kept him safe for the past seven years, the two humans arrive back at Berk, only to discover that Stoick has take the majority of the fit and able to attack the Dragon's Nest, having recently discovered its location.  
Hiccup knows what the warriors of Berk will be facing, but Astrid pulls everyone together to fly to Berk with their old, dragon enemies and destroy the Red Death. Many lives are saved as Hiccup and Toothless duel the Dragon King high in the sky, but upon the monster's fall, Hiccup is badly burned, and his leg must be amputated.  
With a tentative truce in place between humans and dragons, the Vikings return with Hicucp to berk, and the boy sleeps for a week, cared for all the while by a confused and increasingly devoted Astrid.  
Upon waking, he has no memories of any events past his last memories of the Hollow Bastion far to the west, but Astrid's touch gives him back his mind, and the pair go outside to meet the rest of the village, now living in harmony with the dragons.  
A tired Hiccup is greeted and welcomed back to Berk as a hero. Toothless reflects awhile upon the various humans with with whom Hiccup has a relationship of some kind, and decides that things might just work out...  
_

_And now, the conlusion - boy, that's cliché, isn't it?  
_

* * *

_Chapter One: Change_

"_Hiccup? Hiccup, are you alright?_" But Hiccup was most certainly _not _alright.

The boy's weight had suddenly fallen heavy upon Toothless' neck, and the Night Fury knew immediately that his rider's moment of reunion with the villagers of Berk was now well and truly over.

"_Hiccup, please, answer me. Do you feel pain? What do you need?_" Hiccup was now tiring visibly, and the black dragon could tell from the startled and suddenly fearful looks on the other Vikings' faces that the young hero with his arm around the Night Fury's neck was hardly acting the way a healthy man should.

"_Hiccup, I really think _–"

"_Rest._" The answer was soft and gentle, and even though the two were still communicating by merely more than the mental link, Toothless could feel that it was laden with weariness.

"_I...I just need to rest. Toothless, help me back inside...I feel as though I'm going to pass out any minute._" That was all Toothless needed to know.

The Night Fury had been quietly enjoying his moment of inner satisfaction at the sudden surge of admiration he was receiving, observing the countless humans and dragons around him in a respectful yet somewhat aloof manner.

Try as he might, Toothless could not help but look down upon the throng which had assembled to greet the two heroes of Berk.

After all these years, so many generations, battles fought and lost, and uncountable death and grieving on both sides, it had come down to a pair of recluse washouts to bring an end to the horrific warring of the two races.

Toothless' bitter and spiteful feelings towards the Vikings of Berk may have begun to drift away, having been released from their moorings by the steady, implacable hands of true, apologetic remorse, but the Night Fury's frustration and intolerance of other dragons had only grown over the years.

And now the ropes securing this vessel to the docks had been so knotted and tangled by the flowing tides of time's passage, that only the pure hands of one who had already sailed aboard such a ship could set it free.

That someone, Toothless felt, was clearly Hiccup.

Consciously destroying this tortured metaphor with a single thought, the black dragon brought his racing mind back to the present, to deal with matters far more pressing.

"_Let's go._" Toothless turned slowly to face the chieftain's house, Hiccup's shivering arms wrapped tightly around the Night Fury's neck.

The black dragon turned briefly to look at the boy's father, but Stoick gave him a simple, understanding nod, before turning to face the assembled crowd of Vikings and dragons.

"Alright, all ye Vikings and dragons, listen up! Hiccup and Toothless have been through much more than anyone could have asked of them, and deserve their rest as such. I would appreciate it if we could keep the noise in the village to a minimum for the next few days at least." The Vast man glanced over his shoulder at the quietly exiting forms of Toothless and his master.

"Come to think of it, let's not have _any_ ruckus or shenanigans for the rest of the week!"

The chief was still talking, his huge voice booming over the throng for everyone to hear, but Toothless was no longer listening.

His mind had, once again, shifted back to more pressing concerns, specifically his master's health.

As the two of them made their way through the thinning crowd of Vikings and dragons and back up the stone step to chieftain's high residence at the summit of the village hill, Toothless noticed out of the corner of his eye that they had picked up a straggler, and was not at all pleased.

Although the rest of the village had now realised that their hero need merely rest without interruption, and was perfectly willing to give the boy just that, here was a Viking who was caring to the point of being frustratingly difficult to turn away.

Astrid Hofferson would not be put off so easily.

As dragon and rider reached the door, Toothless nudged it open with his scaly snout, noticing that Hiccup had now lost all sense of conscious perception.

He had, quite simply passed out on his feet, one arm still draped over his friend's neck.

The black dragon retracted his teeth, reached around and took the boy's body in his powerful jaws, supporting him carefully so that he would not slump in an awkward way.

But just as Toothless slunk inside and turned to shut the wooden frame behind him, he felt a soft hand upon his back and realised that Astrid was now standing in the doorway, looking worried to say the least.

"Toothless, is he alright? Can I help at all –?" But the Night Fury gave her a menacing growl; Astrid was no longer welcome in Hiccup's house while the boy was still recovering...she would only be a distraction.

Even so, the black dragon could not help but feel a tiny nudge of guilt in the pit of his stomach as he watched the young woman turn away in dismay.

If anyone had earned an apology from the Night Fury and now deserved his trust and respect, it was her.

As soon as Toothless had taken his rider upstairs and put him gently back to bed, the tired dragon found himself wandering back down to the door of the chief's house.

He had awoken barely five minutes ago to find that both Hiccup and Astrid, who had both been present as he had last gone to sleep, were nowhere to be seen.

He had presumed that they had gone outside to meet with the rest of the village, and had followed the sounds of laughter and merriment in spite of his exhausted state of mind.

His guess had been proven right shortly afterwards.

Pausing only to drain the pot of water which Astrid had left for him every morning by the door, Toothless nudged the door open and crept outside once more, into the balmy breeze and midday sun.

The village was busy once again, bustling with Vikings and dragons doing their stuff – whatever it happened to be.

Far off in the distance, in the skies over Raven's Point, he just make out the faint silhouettes of a flight of dragons circling over the pine-forest slopes.

How the Night Fury wished he could be out there with them, riding the great currents of the endless blue sky.

He could try to convince one of the more accepting and courageous Vikings to learn to operate his harness – but then there was the issue of there no longer being a harness.

The carefully crafted flying rig had been burned to ashes and warped beyond recognition in the fires of the Red Death's destruction, along with the beloved tail-fin which had allowed to fly the past seven years.

He could nag the blacksmith to smelt him a new one – from the stories Hiccup had told him of Gobber the Belch, Toothless didn't doubt that the man had the skill or patience to recreate such a mechanical marvel.

But then there was the issue of plans and diagrams – Hiccup had not brought those with him upon his exile from Berk all those years ago, despite having packed everything else in preparation for their departure.

He could get Astrid to try and find them amongst Hiccup's belongings – but the Night Fury did not feel that he could communicate with the young woman to that degree just yet.

Cutting off his chaotic train of thought right there, the black dragon sighed inwardly, accepting the cold reality and awful finality of what the defeat of the Dragon King had really cost them both.

Toothless would have to wait for Hiccup to be ready to fly again.

Quite out of nowhere, the Night Fury suddenly found himself thinking about his new position among his own kind, and how the other dragons' attitudes towards him had changed so much.

He had once been a sad, lonely dragon, derided and shunned by the others of the hive, and mocked by the King himself.

Although his power and skill as a warrior of the great flight had helped save the lives of countless dragons during their frequent raids on Berk, the fact that he was the only Night Fury among thousands of dragons had earned him nothing but mocking sneers and cold indifference.

It hardly helped that, among his own kind, he was utterly repulsive to look at – as ugly as a dragon could possibly be.

"_But look at me now,_" he thought viciously, little bubbles of anger welling up in his mind and bursting on the surface of his conscious thoughts.

Toothless felt like roaring, screaming his inner anger to wind and letting them all know how very wrong they'd been about him.

But all of a sudden, the Night Fury was hit by a realisation so profound that it shook him to the core.

It had occurred to him long ago that he and Hiccup had a very similar past, having both grown up under the strain of simply being different, but being persecuted for it.

But it was the humans, those stubborn, unrelenting, hostile humans who had been the first ones to apologise truly to the son of their village and accept his forgiveness with open, bleeding hearts.

The dragons may have accepted that they now had a place living alongside the Vikings of Berk, but...

They had yet to show the same kind of regret to Toothless for their treatment of him in the past.

Sure, they had all done their very best to make sure he had been properly looked to in the aftermath of the Battle of the Nest, but that was as far as their caring nature had extended.

Even the Nadder who had so openly proclaimed herself to be "Astrid's Nadder" and tried to blend in to the Viking village as much as possible had yet to approach Toothless and engage him in any kind of meaningful conversation.

Toothless snorted, laughing inwardly at the way young _Spineless _had pranced around in front of everyone upon being honoured with a human-given name...

Blinking sleepily in the sudden glare of the sun as it emerged from behind the last wisps of highest cloud, Toothless opened his mouth in a colossal yawn and peered around once more at the jumble of villagers and dragons who moved to and fro, completely at ease in each other's company.

Whatever the case, not even the downhearted Night Fury could deny that a marvellous thing had been achieved in the unification of these two races.

Even he had been surprised by the rapid acceptance and tolerance that each side had gained in the company of the other...

It was wondrous indeed that little Hiccup and his dragon Toothless could bring together these two warring parties in peace and harmony, and a relationship which would hopefully last long into the future.

"_What? What do you want now?_" Toothless had been letting his mind wander aimlessly for quite some time, and was surprised to feel the sudden touch of a human hand upon his flanks.

He was, however, far less surprised to find that it was Astrid who had been trying gently to get his attention.

But the young woman recoiled almost instantly as the pure thoughts slammed into her mind with awful bluntness.

She had obviously not been expecting to be able to communicate directly with another human's dragon, and staggered back in shock, removing her hand from Toothless' side.

Although the Night Fury was exhausted to the point of dazing off and falling asleep where he stood, he somehow managed to whip his tail around to support the stumbling Astrid, who promptly sat down upon the leathery seat, blinking in shock.

Turning around to look at the blond Viking, Toothless kept his tail still to support the dazed young woman and cocked his head, trilling faintly.

He did not even feel angry at her interruption of his hazy daydreaming – just a little amused.

"_Astrid, what do you want?_"

Astrid took a deep breath, and tilted her head back to stare into the Night Fury's eyes, now only a few feet from her own.

"Wow," she spoke at length, opting to put a voice to her thoughts instead of trying to place them directly into the dragon's mind "I can honestly say that I didn't think the link existed between anyone other than a human and their...well, their dragon companion." Toothless warbled in amusement.

"_A false conclusion, to say the least_," he replied gently. "_Suffice to say that, given enough mutual trust and understanding between a dragon and a human, they may communicate as we do now.__ This is my experience, anyway._" Astrid smiled, and opened her mouth, but stopped upon noticing the way Toothless was now looking at her.

The Night Fury was examining her intently, suddenly intrigued by this young human who had been instrumental in the fall of the Dragon King and the unification of their two races.

From the outside, she appeared to be an ordinary Viking woman, albeit a very beautiful one – it was becoming clear why Hiccup was somewhat infatuated by her.

But Toothless could tell that, on the inside, there were secrets hidden away which defined Astrid as an individual, made her who she was, and pushed her to make the decisions she did.

"What?" Astrid asked curiously, somewhat perturbed by the dragon's intense gaze.

Toothless had rarely bothered to glance at her in the past, too caught up in his hatred for the Vikings of Berk.

But now that this animosity was beginning to unravel from around the Night Fury's heart and fall away like tangled yarn from a loom, he suddenly found himself strangely curious about this young Viking.

What had really caused her to come in search of Hiccup, in spite of the dangers and the uncertainty in the outcome of her quest?

"_You,_" replied Toothless after a moment's thought, "_are an interesting little human. Yes, indeed you are._" And before Astrid could respond, he leaned forward and nudged her forehead with his snout ever so gently – and was intrigued to find that she recoiled in pain from even his most soothing touch.

"Ouch! Toothless, what do you mean by –?"

"_That scar _–" the Night Fury cut in, "– _Is it a dragon's bite?_" Astrid sniffed, giving him an irritable look.

"Yes, it is. There was a – a raid on Berk several days before I found you and Hiccup up at the castle, and I got bitten by an Icebolt – why?" Toothless shook his head.

"_I'm not entirely sure, but I believe that the Icebolt's fangs are venomous _– _to humans, anyway._" Astrid's face fell and for a moment she looked quite horrified.

"I had – I'd suspected that they were. I've had this nasty ache which has been coming and going this past week. Runa, that's the village healer by the way, says that it looks fine –" But Toothless cut clean across her ramblings.

"_I'll do a deal with you,_" he thought clearly, and watched in amusement as Astrid's face changed from worry and anxiety through to confusion and finally to intrigue and a little suspicion.

"Yes?"

"_I will let you go up and sit with Hiccup, as long as you promise me three things._" Toothless couldn't help but bark out loud with laughter as the young woman's face leapt with joy and eagerness.

"What are they?" she practically cried, and the black dragon closed his eyes for a moment, lest he break down in laughter from the overjoyed look on the blond Viking face.

"_Firstly,_" Toothless started off, now quite serious, "_I want you to go and see this Runa sometime later today and ask her to treat that bite of yours as she would wound from the fangs of a Terrible Terror._" Astrid nodded, her face alight with expectation.

This was evidently rather a small bother to her in comparison to her being allowed to stay with Hiccup.

She hopefully understood that the request was for her own good, anyway.

"_Secondly,_" he continued, "_I want you to find time to speak with your parents and repair your relationship with them._" Astrid opened her mouth in surprise at this request, but Toothless growled in gentle warning.

"_I've seen enough over this last week to know that something happened before you came in search of Hiccup that created a rift between you and your mother and father _–_ this is one of my conditions. Take it or leave it._" Astrid nodded speechlessly, now looking a little worried at the apparently fearful prospect of having a serious conversation with her alienated parents.

"_And thirdly,_" Toothless finished off with a cheeky trill, "_I want to have a serious, philosophical conversation with you sometime in the near future._" The young Viking was completely taken aback.

"Philo-what-ical? And about what? What do you –?" But the Night Fury cut her off one last time.

"_Just promise me these things, and you can go in and see Hiccup. Can you do that? Am I really asking so much? All of these things are for you own benefit, you know _– _I hope you can see that._"

There was silence for a few seconds, while Astrid stared at the dragon, her face impassive.

"Alright then," she replied finally, voice toneless and flat.

"But what does _– _philophosical mean?" Toothless barked with laughter.

"_Never mind – now go on! I'm sure Hiccup would love to see you – well, perhaps not, as he's fast asleep – but go on in anyway._" Astrid stood up to leave, her face once more alight with happiness.

Just as she turned to go, however, Toothless whipped back around to grab her with his tail, bringing his snout up to touch her nose, glaring straight into her bright blue eyes.

"_And one more thing. I'm sure I don't need to make you promise this one, but take good care of Hiccup!_" Astrid smiled uncertainly, but relaxed as the Night Fury whuffled in dragonesque amusement.

"_Or else!_"

Toothless now simply stood there, crouched on the great stone steps which led up to Hiccup's house, watching as Astrid opened the door and slipped inside noiselessly, gifting the exhausted dragon with one last little smile.

The Night Fury shook his head, chuckling to himself, and set off in the opposite direction down the hill and into the village of berk.

Humans, he reflected, were funny creatures.

* * *

_Well, next chapter in two weeks' time, as ever, reviews and comments welcomed and encouraged, and I'll try to answer any specific questions people have at the end of chapters if I can't PM them._

_Yes, you are going to find out what happened to Hiccup in the seven year gap - that's already planned as the second sequel - I would do it as the first, but I have something specific in mind which doesn't work there, a setting that I want to use. Part Three will be dealing mostly with relationships between humans and humans, humans and dragons, and even some dragons and dragons.  
_

_Two weeks, people!_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	2. Chapter Two

_Hi people,  
_

_I believe I don't need to write much for now, except for the usual recap...  
_

_In the last chapter, an exhausted Hiccup was taken back up to his room after being welcomed home as a hero by the Vikings of Berk. Toothless then proceded to contemplate the state of events in the village, only to be interrupted by a frustratingly persistent Astrid.  
_

* * *

_Chapter Two: A Time for Talk_

Toothless wandered aimlessly through the village, gazing around at the little groups of Vikings and dragons that he saw here and there, all of them hard at work.

There was a lot to be done: numerous shelters had to be built for the new reptilian residents, a set of fairly loose feeding timetables needed to be organised, and there were quite a few rules which need to be laid down clearly for the dragon population – things like 'no defecating in the town square.'

The Night Fury chuckled to himself.

Little Astrid Hofferson had been very busy over the last week, having taken the responsibility of spreading Hiccup's peaceful teachings very seriously indeed.

He hoped that the young woman was not pestering him too much.

It had been clear how much she had missed his wakeful presence over the last week.

Several nights ago the chief had been badgering Astrid for the whole story – well, for everything she could tell him, anyway.

Hiccup was sleeping peacefully with Toothless was at his side, and the Night Fury had prompted the blonde to go one step further and tell the whole village – so she had.

Stoick had assembled every Viking and dragon in the Mead Hall one evening for the tale.

It had been a _very _tight fit indeed...but everyone was keen enough to ignore the squashing and snuggle in for the story.

If anything, the whole evening had actually helped the two races bond even further, as most of the villagers had ended up going to sleep in the hall, kept comfortable by the dragons' soft wings and warm sides.

Astrid had conveniently decided to leave a few of the...less critical events out of her tale, but Toothless had silently agreed with the young woman that some things were best left unsaid – certainly at this stage, anyway.

Toothless had been the only dragon who had not been present – he had been with Hiccup that night, staying by his side as ever.

In fact, he had been quite quiet and relaxed since the Battle of the Nest, almost lazy even.

It had been nice to simply sit and watch the world go by feeling his injuries healing and his strength returning, but the Night Fury could have easily been helping out in the village for the last few days without any risk of straining a muscle at all.

In truth, he simply did not believe that it was his duty to do anything more in order to help the new dragon-Viking relationship.

Thankfully, it seemed that everyone else felt the same way.

"_Toothless._" The Night Fury jumped a little at the sound of his own name being spoken by another dragon, but huffed irritably upon noticing who it was that was addressing him so informally.

Only Hiccup, Astrid and Stoick had ever used his human-given name.

"_Yes?_" His response was suitably quiet and dignified, he thought, full of the kind of authority that he should now be wielding.

Spineless was approaching him cautiously, her head cocked to one side, one eye giving him an almost fearful look.

The Nadder was the first of the dragon population to seek him out with the apparent intention of conversing about more than how to get a human's attention without frightening them, or some other little oddity.

Toothless smiled inwardly.

Perhaps he was finally about to get the hero treatment which Hiccup had so lavishly been awarded by both groups.

Oh, the Vikings had been in awe of Toothless too, and the Night Fury had found himself to be the centre of attention of many a group of ogling humans.

But the dragons...

"_How are your injuries?_" Toothless could almost see the cogs turning inside the blue dragon's head as she tried to ease her way gently into a conversation with him that would not end in an angry row of bared teeth and drawn claws.

"_Healing up well enough._

_I can walk around comfortably and feel almost ready to fly again._" Toothless made sure to remove all traces of aggression from his voice.

However angry and let down he felt deep within, he could not let these innermost emotions show.

Not when he was now so close to being accepted by dragonkind as one of their own.

"_Good, that's good..._" The Nadder's chirping voice trailed off, and for a moment the two dragons simply stood there, eyeing each other off.

It was Toothless who broke the silence.

"_Shall we walk?_"

"_Oh, gladly!_" Spineless was evidently quite pleased that the Night Fury was drawing them away from the rest of the village.

She now trotted along beside the black dragon with the air of a reptile who had just hurdled a whole house without the use of her wings.

and was rather proud of her achievement.

"_Where are we going?_" Spineless clucked curiously, glancing at the Night Fury with intrigue in her yellow eyes.

"_Oh, nowhere in particular – I just need to stretch my legs a little._"

Reaching the edge of the woods which travelled up the up the rocky slopes behind the village like hairs on a troll's back, Toothless turned to face the open sky and sat back on his haunches, soaking up the intense heat of the sun's beating rays.

The Nadder crouched down to one side, folded her wings back over her flanks and cast her companion a furtive glance.

"_I must say,_" she cooed at length, "_it was really quite...inspirational to see the way the Vikings welcomed young Hiccup back into their village just now._"

"_Mmh,_" Toothless grunted in reply, scowling inwardly.

He could see the way this conversation was going, but not quite make out where it would end up.

Spineless pressed on, determined to reach her point.

"_Even though the other humans had considered him an outsider and even shunned and scorned him as a youngling, they still found it within them to accept that Hiccup was merely different, not strange or alien, or someone to be mocked and even feared._"

Again, Toothless found he had no words to contribute to the conversation, and so he let the blue dragon continue uninterrupted.

"_I guess what I'm really trying to say is, well – perhaps we were a little hard on you._"

"_Pardon?_" said Toothless quietly, turning to look at the Nadder with a single, beady eye.

The other dragon could not hold his gaze, and looked away immediately.

"_It seems to me as though the Vikings simply needed to look a little deeper._

_Had they done so, they most certainly would have seen a power in Hiccup which could have been turned to their advantage far earlier. Much pain and suffering on both sides could have been avoided, not to mention the loss of your rider's leg...and even your own fin._"

At long last, the Night Fury thought he could finally see where the end of their conversation lay.

"_But the blame for these past, catastrophic events lies not only with the Vikings of Berk, but with us, the dragons. I – I always knew it, but it was something that my rider – little Astrid – said that made me finally realise I had to admit it. To you._"

"_And what was that?_" Although Toothless' heart was screaming at him to tear into the blue monster with searing fire and sharp talons, his voice was deadly calm.

More and more awful memories of times gone by were beginning to awaken within the black dragon, yet he held them in check.

He would not lose control, like Hiccup did.

He could not.

He _must_ not.

"_We, the dragons, always had the power to overthrow the evil Red Death and free ourselves from his tyrannical oppression. There were so many thousands of us, and only one of him. Yet none of us thought to speak up and try and bring the Nest together to defeat the monster. We all just continued on living under his claws, feeding him and serving him like the slaves we were."_

_"All but one, that is._"

Toothless turned away.

He knew how this tale had ended, but did not like to be reminded of it...

* * *

Hissing with anger, the Night Fury felt his rage building.

He peered down at the Dragon King from his rocky outcrop on one of the highest ledges inside the Nest.

The tyrant was just gobbling up the last morsels of food which the great flights had brought back to him from the Viking village.

"_Delicious!_" He rumbled at length, scraping his teeth on one of the huge stalagmites which towered up from the burning stone of the great cavern's floor.

"_Absolutely scrumptious! And for you to have brought back a real Viking for dessert...you do your king proud..._" A wave of appreciative chittering and squawking rose up from the dragons lining the walls of the Inner Nest, but a huge roar from the Red Death silenced them all.

"_But how DARE you bring back so little?_" His voice echoed around the immense cavern's rocky walls, alone and unchallenged.

"_You thought you could assuage my hunger with a few of the more appetising morsels? I still require food! Either you raid that pitiful village once more this night, or I will have a portion of dragon's blood as sustenance!_" As the angry bellowing faded, a frantic din of fearful chattering rose once more.

The attack on the Viking village had cost a dozen dragons their lives, but their King would devour perhaps twice that many if his wishes for more aliment were not fulfilled.

The Night Fury, however, had had enough.

Leaping softly from his lofty perch, the black dragon glided down upon ebon wings towards the Red Death, his mind roiling with the rage of a slave rising up against the chains of oppression.

As the Night Fury approached the tyrant's towering form, he flicked his wings around to stabilise himself and floated upon the hot winds which billowed up from the orange depths of the volcano.

Blinded by a bitter temper which he could not control, the black dragon was oblivious to the fear which normally awoke in his mind by the Dragon King's colossal form.

But although the monster was perhaps a hundred times larger than the Night Fury, the latter bared his teeth and growled his enraged feelings in an expression of deepest loathing.

"_Why don't you go and get it for yourself?_"

"_What?_" The Red Death's eyes all flicked around to stare at the courageous, or perhaps insane black dragon before him, full of malice...and what appeared to be a little surprise; none of his subjects had ever dared to utter such words before.

"_What did you say?_"

"_You heard me. Go and get your own, instead of making us get it for you._"The Dragon King was speechless; one of his own servants, standing out from the ranks of the mindless dragon horde to challenge his might?

But the Night Fury took advantage of the tense silence to enact a revolt that he had been planning since before he could fly.

Raising his head up to look at the cavern's highest walls, he roared out to the thousands of dragons nesting in the nooks and crannies of the volcano's great fissure.

"_Dragons! Rise up with me! Rise up and bring down this tyrant! Too long has he enslaved us, forced us to feed and defend him –_" But the black dragon's call to arms was cut brutally short by a howl of anger.

Rising up like a monstrous grey wave from the depths of the ocean, the Red Death lunged forward at the little gnat which hovered in front of him.

But The Night Fury was too agile by far, and with a sudden beat of his wings, he was soaring up on the great plumes of hot gasses which rose up from the fiery depths below, and the tyrants maw snapped shut on nothing but air.

"_Do you challenge me, little one? Would you face me alone to win the right to the throne?_" The Dragon King's voice was suddenly cold and focussed, and he fixed all six of his beady eyes on the rebel's form, floating just out of his reach.

"_I will destroy you and feast upon your kin!_"

"_But the challenge is not fair!_" The black dragon threw his head back and roared to the highest rocks once more.

"_Dragons! Unite with me and tear down this beast who has imprisoned you all!_" This was it.

Finally, they were going to break free of the tyranny of the Red Death, at last they would –

But as the Dragon King heaved himself upwards, snapping at the lithe black form which flitted mere yards before his face, the dragons all took flight – up and away towards the vent high above.

That was it.

The Night Fury's dreams of freedom were gone, scattered by the beating wings of countless fleeing dragons.

Without them, he could do nothing against the power of their enslaver, but without him, they would be nothing more than enslaved.

Thankfully, the black dragon's common sense took precedence over his irrational anger, and he immediately joined the flight as it began to swirl up and out from the volcano's vent.

He could do more alive and safe than as a martyr in the jaws of a tyrant.

He knew that the monster would not pursue him either, for he was but one dissident in a nest of thousands of subservient dragons.

The Red Death's rage, however, was still very much present.

With colossal strength, the monster launched himself upwards and into the cloud of winged reptiles, his gaping maw snapping shut on more than a dozen helpless dragons.

The Night Fury's great speed and powerful acceleration meant that he was easily able to escape the Dragon King's thrashing form, but many other dragons were not so lucky.

Those who were fortunate enough to be eaten alive by their enslaver were gifted with a quick death between his enormous teeth, but many more were thrown against the cavern walls, their pained cries chasing the black dragon up and out into the starry sky...

Toothless never returned to the Nest after that incident, save to bring long-awaited retribution down upon the Dragon King with Hiccup in the saddle.

He continued to take part in the attacks on Berk, but only to protect his fellow dragons from Viking weapons.

Every loss of life, be it human or dragon, cut into his heart, until there was nothing left but a hatred of not only the tyrant who had caused them all so much pain, but also the thousands of dragons who had not found the courage within them to rise up and slay their oppressor.

Thus, the Night Fury had been left with no other option but to bide his time, and wait for another opportunity to gather strength and strike back decisively at the evil Red Death – only fate had intervened in the form of a clever young boy with a little wooden catapult...

* * *

"_So you think that you should have followed my lead and defied the Dragon King? Even if it could have caused the deaths of many hundreds of dragons at his great claw? Even if, like with me, it could have achieved nothing but more senseless death and destruction?_"

"_Yes._" The simplicity of Spineless' answer surprised him, and for a moment, Toothless was completely silent.

"_In hindsight, it would have been better to have united and brought him low there and then,_" the Nadder continued in low tones.

"_You set an example, Tri – Toothless. You showed us all what lengths the monster would go to in order to control us...yet still we did nothing –_"

"_Except for continue to raid Berk and serve his mighty highness, just as you always had._" In spite of the fact that Toothless' anger was now reaching a critical point, he felt that, unlike his master, he could control himself.

The dragons' continuing inability to act may have caused so much more loss and suffering on both sides, but the Night Fury was finally beginning to understand how terrified they all were of Death.

The Red Death.

He shivered a little as a cold reminder of the beast's power came surging up from the depths of his mind and blasted him with the image of those blood-red spines and evil grey eyes, which seemed to stare at him through time and from beyond death's curtain –

"_I know. That's just it. We did nothing, while you... You befriended the human who crippled you and then came back, after seven years, to confront and destroy that which had first driven you away. Toothless, we all owe you our freedom._"

"_No, please don't say it like that –_"

"_And so, on behalf of and with the approval of all of the dragons of Berk, I ask you, Toothless, to step up and lead us in this new age of friendship and peace with humans._"

Toothless was utterly stunned, and turned back to look incredulously at Spineless, only to see that she was now crouched down on the ground in front of him, her wings flattened out in a sign of servitude.

The full weight of what was being asked of him just didn't seem to register.

"_W-What?_" he blurted out, staring with wide eyes down at the Nadder before him.

Unexpected?

Absolutely.

Undeserved?

Quite possibly.

"_You're all – you mean – are you telling me that this was a unanimous decision?_"

"_Every mature-age dragon was given the proposal of choosing a new leader. And let me tell you, the choice was easy for all._"

* * *

Toothless returned to the village alone, his mind utterly blown away by the prospect of what he had just been asked to do.

Sure, he had been seeking the respect, admiration and acceptance of his fellow dragons, but very soon he would no longer be required to see them as his equals – dragon creed required that the king be awarded complete subservience by the rest of the population, which he traditionally saw as the lesser majority.

Every dragon knew and accepted this as their way, but what shocked Toothless was the fact that they were all still prepared to accept him as that kind of leader, even though the Red Death had abused the position so.

The Dragon King was meant to be the perfect example of what every young dragon should aspire to be...

That was it.

This was consummate proof that the dragons of Berk were taking their new opportunity to forge a peaceful and long-lasting relationship with their human counterparts seriously.

In this time of change and uncertainty they needed an idol, an example, someone who knew exactly how to handle a human.

Toothless barked with amusement and the thought.

Both races had the idea ingrained in their minds that it was the humans who needed to learn how to handle the presence of dragons in their village.

But the Night Fury's seven years with Hiccup had taught him that this was not necessarily the case...

Reaching the door to the chief's house, Toothless remembered that Astrid was still inside talking with Hiccup, or perhaps just watching him sleep.

He smiled inwardly, pondering the lengths to which women would go to get their way.

He could only hope that the blond Viking was not pestering Hiccup too much – although this wasn't likely.

The boy did seem to enjoy her company quite a lot.

Shaking his head in disbelief of what was obviously transpiring between the two young adults in spite of past events, the black dragon was startled to hear the sound of his own name being uttered by an almost entirely foreign voice.

"Hey, er, Toothless?" Turning to look down the great stone steps which ran down to the town square, the Night Fury's eyes came to rest upon the sizeable stomach of a rather chubby looking Viking who could not have been much older than Hiccup.

Toothless recognised him instantly as one of the group that had distracted the Red Death back on the Dragon's Island until Hiccup and Toothless had arrived to finish the fight.

"That is your name, right?" Toothless rolled his eyes and lay down upon one of the larger stones on the pathway, soaking up the warmth which radiated from the sun-baked rocks.

The Viking boy smiled uncertainly, before making his way up the steps to stand beside the Night Fury's prone form, fidgeting with his hands.

While none of the Vikings were the least bit scared of their dragon companions, Toothless had found that at least he still had the ability to instil a little fear and awe into the hearts of the humans.

Thankfully, the chubby boy was not struck dumb by the black dragon's presence, and managed to at least speak.

"I've – I've got a message for you," he croaked, not meeting Toothless' amused gaze.

"The chief told me to spread the word to all of the dragons that he's planning a huge banquet in honour of the friendship we now share with your kind." Toothless' ears pricked up, and his mind ground slowly into motion once again, in spite of the midday heat.

Such an event would be a good time to announce his decision to not only the dragon population but to both races on whether or not he was willing to accept the rights and responsibilities of becoming the Dragon King.

In truth, the Night Fury was very far indeed deciding on the matter.

There were so many voices in his head which supported both choices – should he accept and prepare himself for the life of respect and recognition he had always dreamt of?

Or would the better choice be to politely decline and remain a free dragon, unchained and able to fly anywhere with little Hiccup on his back and not a care in the world?

"Toothless?" The Night Fury realised that he had dazed off once again, and snapped his head back to look at the chubby Viking so suddenly that it made the young man flinch violently.

"I'm – I'm just letting you all know," he said with a toothy grin.

"The chief says that none of the dragons have to help if they don't want to – us Vikings are going to sort it all out, so you just keep...you know, doing it easy..." And without another word, the funny boy turned around and trotted back down the hill as fast as his stumpy legs would carry him – it was clear that the Night Fury had a profound psychological effect on any humans around him, if only due to his reputation.

The idea of a banquet celebrating the unification of the two races pleased Toothless immensely.

For one thing, it was an excuse for the dragon population to go wild – figuratively speaking.

The Vikings would almost certainly take the opportunity to drink as much beer as possible in earnest, and the Night Fury was looking forward to seeing if any of his kind had retained their taste for the stuff since the incident almost ten years ago involving a raid which had gone into the human's brewery...

Toothless laughed at the hilarious memories of several dozen dragons flapping lopsidedly back towards the nest, belching all the way.

All in all, the notion that such an event would help to strengthen the bonds growing between the two races was well founded.

That Vast chieftain evidently had his head screwed on right.

And speaking of Stoick...

Toothless' heart leapt with the joy at the idea which exploded into his mind.

There was one more gift he could reward his master with, one more present he give grand Hiccup for his loyal friendship.

To this end, the Viking chief was the one who needed to be sought out.

With a jolt of excitement, the Night Fury leapt up from the sun-baked stone and pelted off into the village to find the father of his favourite human.

* * *

_Just the usual deal, people. Two weeks 'til next chapter, reviews and comments appreciated!  
_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	3. Chapter Three

_Good evening people!  
_

_Last chapter, a tired Hiccup was taken back to his room after being hailed as a hero by the village of Berk __upon re-awakening_. A protective Toothless then had a rather stern, yet meaningful conversation with an enthusiastic and caring Astrid. Their conversing ended on a friendly tone, and Toothless then proceded to speak with Spineless for a time.  


_Harsh memories were re-lived the former, but his conscience was soon after shocked by the revelation that the dragons of Berk had decided that they wanted him as their new kind - a position which he is uncertain about, given the terrible abuse of the position by the previous Dragon Kind, the Red Death.  
_

_Meanwhile, Astrid had found herself in the middle of another conflict...  
_

* * *

_Chapter Three: Wounds of the Heart_

Astrid paused on the staircase, her heart pounding so hard in her chest that it seemed as though the earth itself were shaking violently, mirroring the fear that now gripped the young woman.

She wasn't even sure what she was afraid of.

In a room at the top of these stairs lay a weary boy, missing half of his left leg, most likely fast asleep...and snoring, too.

Yet here she was, stuck holding on to the wooden banister for dear life, utterly petrified by the prospect of even being in the same room as him.

What was she doing?

Astrid had practically begged Toothless to let her go and watch over Hiccup as he rested, having given in to several promises of which she was now very unsure about.

Yet now her courage was gone.

She, Astrid Hofferson, had journeyed alone as far west as any Viking had gone (and further than most) in order to bring back the chief's son and try to restore peace and stability to the village – or so she kept telling herself.

This had inevitably led to a confrontation with a monster almost half the size of Berk itself, a battle into which Astrid had thrown herself with the fullest acceptance that she might not come out alive.

Yet here she was, shuddering with nausea and biting her lip in fear of what she was about to face.

To an outsider, it may have looked like she were about fight to the death against the monster of her darkest nightmares.

But, in reality, the only danger that awaited her in that room was locked up in the mind of a cripple.

Astrid hit herself mentally.

She hated herself for thinking of him like that, even if it were the truth.

He would never walk properly again, would never feel the joy of running, perhaps never even fly...

Once again, it was guilt that finally pushed her forward and gave her the strength to keep walking up the steps towards Hiccup's room.

But for the danger?

Astrid could only hope that the rage and resent she had glimpsed in the boy's eyes earlier that day would not resurface and escape to take physical form again, like it had back at the hollow bastion.

Reaching the top of the staircase, she paused for a moment to clear her head.

As the buzzing nuisance of Berk's ongoing social changes faded slowly into the back of her mind, a single question was left like a lonely piece of driftwood, washed up on the beaches of her consciousness as the tide of mental activity ebbed.

Why was she here?

Astrid still hadn't managed to pin down the exact reason that she was caring for Hiccup so much.

She had already disregarded the more feeble excuses she had told herself: guilt for his lost leg, lust to share in the glory which he was now being showered with, and other such deceptively acceptable reasons.

However, after all these shallow attempts at defending against the truth had been pushed to one side, there was left only a single way to justify her uncharacteristically kind-hearted actions.

She was in love with him.

Astrid swayed on the spot, clutching the banister at the top of the staircase as tightly as she could.

It were as though her mind simply couldn't handle the idea that what she was feeling, all the pain and longing, was actually...love.

She had kissed Hiccup as they had arrived back at Berk, and even confessed her feelings to him in one moment of both tremendous stupidity and insane courage back on the beaches of the Dragon's Island.

But...back then he had been a lonely outcast returning home after seven years of exile, with a heavy burden and a hurting heart.

Now...

Now he was the hero of a great battle which had ended a terrible war, with a crippling injury to show for it, but loved by all nonetheless.

He was an inspirational icon, a legend, someone whose story would be passed down from generation to generation long into the future.

Did Astrid simply want to be a part of that story, or was the reason that she now cared for Hiccup more than her own parents that she had fallen victim that sinful, weak emotion?

Did she really love him?

Seven years ago, Hiccup had been just that – a hiccup.

A useless little nobody who scurried around under the shadows of stronger Vikings hoping he would not make a fool of himself or be noticed.

But now...

Now he was a tall, strong, handsome youth with such an array of talents, not to mention his critical skills in communicating peacefully with dragons, that he was not useless, just...different.

That was it.

That was the reason behind Astrid's feelings.

All her life, the young woman had strived to stand out, to make others see her as someone special, someone...different.

But all of a sudden, here was boy who embodied that which she so desired.

He was Different.

And Astrid loved him for it.

Overjoyed that she had finally conquered her inability to accept the fact that she was a human who could feel such emotions, the young woman barely noticed herself opening the door and walking silently through into Hiccup's room.

Once she was inside, however, her nerves began to tingle once again at the sight of his prone form resting upon the bed, and she shut the door behind her with a snap, shaking a little.

Turning to stand with her back against the door, Astrid bit her lip and held her breath, hoping that, in her excited haste, she had not accidentally woken the boy.

However, a faint rumbling sound told her that this was not the case.

Hiccup slept on, snoring all the while.

Now trying to suppress her laughter, the young woman was hit by a sudden, tremendous rush of euphoria.

Suddenly, it seemed like the whole world was bathed in a sweet, warm wash of happiness, like a golden light which shone down from highest Valhalla to fill her very being with a feeling of love and life, transcending any words with which she tried to describe it.

Astrid tiptoed over to the side of Hiccup's bed, grabbing the chair from his workbench the while, and sat down quietly at his side, her face split from side to side by the widest of smiles.

But just as she was beginning to feel like this amazing joy would last forever, a single, dark cloud blotted out the sun which shone into her soul, and a mist of coldest doubt, uncertainty and worry crept over her heart.

Did Hiccup love her?

The easiest answer to tell herself was yes.

Everyone had known about 'Hiccup's little thing' all those years ago, and the gang had never ceased to come up with new and amusing ways of teasing both Hiccup and Astrid about the former's feelings towards the latter.

Astrid had experienced little difficulty in brushing aside even the most disturbing comments from the other young Vikings, and had even gone as far to join in mocking the helpless little boy about his apparently unrequited feelings.

She was a strong, proud Hofferson's daughter, destined to live, fight and die as a warrior-maiden – her dreams had run roughly along those lines, anyway.

However, as more and more of the jumbled memories of the past began to unravel within her mind, Astrid found herself focussing on one particular event on that fateful day, seven years ago.

Only minutes ago, Hiccup had shown to the whole village the peaceful nature of a dragon by becalming and soothing a Monstrous Nightmare, the one that Snotlout had since claimed as his mount, no less.

A brooding Stoick then summoned most of the village to the Mead Hall to decide on what course of action to take, and the other Viking teenagers all disappeared back into the village...leaving Astrid alone with a sullen, worried Hiccup.

What then took place had confused the young woman to this day.

Hiccup appeared quite resentful towards Astrid after she confessed to him that she told Stoick about the boy's dragon secret before the fight, but the chief's son was unable to call upon any of that fearsome rage terrified her with the previous day.

But as soon as Astrid tried to tell him that she was sorry for her rash, jealous actions, the atmosphere between them changed quite drastically.

They had been...so close, so very close –

But Astrid was sick of contemplating what could have been, had events taken a different course.

There were countless potential outcomes to their tale which she could think of, each one more catastrophic than the last.

She simply sat there for a while, gathering her thoughts, sorting through the great mound of mouldy memories from the past seven years, searching for those still sweet with a hint of pleasant-tasting happiness.

However, Astrid's mind was unable to hold sway over the powerful combination of mingling memories and agitated emotions, and she drifted quietly off to sleep.

* * *

Stretching her arms above her head and yawning hugely, Astrid awoke to a very rough noise indeed.

Hiccup was coughing, his body shuddering under the blankets with the force of clearing his throat of whatever dust was caught there.

Sitting bolt upright in the chair where she had fallen asleep, the young woman rubbed her eyes and wondered how it was possible that simply resting in a chair could make her back ache so much.

It only took Hiccup a few seconds to quieten down, and soon enough his prone form rested still in the bed.

Although the boy's eyes were still closed, his snore had ceased to shake the wooden room with its rumbling tones.

Chuckling a little at this comparison between Hiccup's sleeping breath and one of the fabled 'earthquakes' from down south, Astrid gazed at his freckled features, a sly suspicion sneaking into her mind.

"Hiccup, I know you're awake," she said quietly, voice brimming with mirth.

Predictably enough, the young man's face split into a tired grin, and he opened his eyes wearily, giving Astrid a mock-grumpy stare.

"I am now," he replied, and Astrid giggled.

"I didn't wake you!" she retorted, incensed by the outrageous idea Hiccup would even _think _she would wake him from his slumber. "You must have got something caught in your throat –"

"I know," the boy cut in gently, gifting Astrid with a smile and a very wide yawn.

"I really don't want to disturb you," the blond Viking said quietly, a little guilty that she might have somehow been responsible for the hero's untimely awakening.

"I should probably leave so you can sleep undisturbed –" Hiccup's reaction was instant and unexpected, for the young man immediately hauled himself up to sit straight-backed against the wall behind his bed, rubbing his eyes.

"No, that's alright, stay a while," he yawned. "Anyway, now that I'm awake I doubt I'm going to be able to get back to sleep." For the first time since he woke up, Hiccup turned to focus his attention directly on Astrid, smiling at her from beneath his long, brown hair.

"How are you?"

"How am _I_?" she asked in disbelief, raising her eyebrows at the question. "You are joking, right? You're the one who's been hauled through lowest Hel and come out the other side still alive!" Hiccup just grinned cheekily.

"Yes, but you're the one who dragged me back," he said with a gentle smile, and Astrid blushed. "And besides," he continued, unfazed her reddened face, "I think it's now clear that I'm going to be just fine – well..." His smile faded a little.

"Aside from my leg. Or lack of it, rather."

However, just as Astrid began to feel guilty once more, Hiccup seemed to sense that the young woman was still hurting inside.

"Don't start," he said, holding up a single finger to silence the young woman, just as she opened her mouth with yet another apology prepared.

"How many times do I have to tell you? It's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault. It just happened. Accept it." But for Astrid, it just wasn't that simple. "Alright, fine, let's talk about something else then." Astrid was now feeling strangely upset that Hiccup wouldn't let her rant about how she was to blame for everything.

She opened her mouth to say something, but then closed it again, completely at a loss for words.

As the young woman began to realise just how awkward she felt with Hiccup gazing at her as though she were his saviour, the boy's face split into a wide grin.

"Still," he said, voice shaking with silent laughter, "better I'm a _man_ with a missing leg." Astrid furrowed her brows, unsure of what to make of this statement.

Better a man...than a woman?

Perhaps Hiccup was about to make a joke about –

"Because if I were a woman, you could call me _Eileen_."

"Oh...?" It took Astrid's mind several seconds to digest what she had just turned, but those few seconds were some of the most awkward in her life, as Hiccup just sat there, grinning broadly at her.

"Oh!" And without another word, the two of them broke down into fits of howling laughter.

Heaving with mirth, the pair simply sat there for a minute, tears streaming down their faces, their sides aching with the pains of joy.

Eventually, Astrid managed to quieten herself down, wiped her eyes with her sleeve and looked away rather pointedly from the bed-set boy.

Here was another aspect that she loved about Hiccup, but had only just been reminded of; he was _funny_.

* * *

Hiccup yawned again, still shaking with laughter from his little moment of humorous wit.

"_That's a good one,_" he thought to himself, still chuckling a little.

"_I should remember that one._" Turning back to look at Astrid, the young man noticed that she was purposely avoiding his gaze, and had, once again, gone quite red in the face.

The reminder of what had recently passed between them was both sudden and brutal.

But whether or not the feelings were mutual, Hiccup was simply not ready for this.

Not yet.

And Astrid had to know.

"Astrid?" Hiccup spoke quietly, coughing a little from the combination of the tickle in his throat and the aftershocks of his rib-cracking witticism.

"Yes?" she replied quietly, turning back to look at him.

That, however, was something that Hiccup could not handle.

Her gentle smile, beautiful, smooth face, flowing golden hair barely contained by that brown, studded headband...merely the sight of her should have been enough to make his leg grow back in an instant, were such things only possible.

And suddenly, Hiccup found he couldn't say it.

He just could not bring himself to destroy the smile on that perfect face.

So he settled for the next best thing...a plausible lie.

"Where's Toothless?" The young man could have sworn he saw the smile on Astrid's face falter for just a moment, but if she had expected something else, she did a very good job of concealing her disappointment.

"I'm not sure", she answered softly, wiping a single tear of mirth from her cheek. "Somewhere outside with the other dragons, I think –" Hiccup snorted.

"Not likely," he said bluntly, the smile on his own face vanishing instantly.

Astrid stared at him, shocked by his sudden change of attitude.

"Why...why's that?" she asked uncertainly, fully aware of the fact that this matter might well be as sensitive as the tale of Hiccup's banishment from Berk.

Hiccup sighed.

"It's not my place to tell you – sorry." It was a simple, blunt statement, but Astrid wasn't insulted.

"Fair enough..." Once again, the two were left simply looking at each other, soft eyed and with gentle smiles –

"Hang on..." Hiccup's befuddled brain had finally picked up on something important which may well have been forgotten by everyone else.

"Where are my packs? The rucksacks I brought back with me from the hollow bastion?" A tone of desperation was creeping into his voice, and he sat bolt upright in bed, reaching over to throw aside the blankets.

There were things in those bags which meant more to him than his own life –

"Hiccup, relax. I brought them up to your room from the village square as soon as we all got back from the Dragon's Island. I don't think anyone had touched them –" Astrid spoke quite quickly, moving to the edge of her chair, but Hiccup slumped back down, breathing a huge sigh of relief.

"Why? I thought you just had clothes and snacks in them..." Hiccup gave a light chuckle.

"Well...not _just _food and blankets." He now turned back to look directly into Astrid's eyes. "Truth be told, I...my inner feelings were that I was coming back to stay." The young woman raised her eyebrows, but she said nothing.

Hiccup cleared his throat.

Something else was coming to the surface, something which he felt he simply had to let out.

"Seven...seven years is a long time to be on your own," he said, voice wavering a little.

Astrid's smile had completely vanished, and she was now staring at him with sorrow and compassion in her clear, blue eyes.

"While I always had Toothless by my side – and don't get me wrong, he's the best friend I've ever had –" Astrid's gaze dropped to the floor.

"– I moved around a lot. I just couldn't seem to stay in one place without things going wrong for me. And after a while, I found myself – I couldn't believe what I was feeling, but I found myself missing Berk, and everyone in it."

Astrid shifted a little, her hands clasped together on her lap, eyes still pointed straight down at the wooden floor.

"I know it seems – well, crazy, really. After everything that had happened, even with my own father's curses driving me out, I still felt like I was somehow separated from where I belonged...and the people I belonged with."

His voice broke just as the blond Viking shifted her gaze back to him, her eyes laden with kind of bleak, hopeless sadness which Hiccup simply could not stand to see – not coming from such a beautiful, bright young woman.

A moment later, however, it was gone, and replaced by a familiar grin of cheeky happiness.

"But now you're back – for good." It was a simple statement, but it meant the world to Hiccup.

The boy's spirits began to lift once again.

Astrid was right; he was back – for good.

"Right!" he said suddenly and a little too loudly for the silent little room, and Astrid jumped with fright.

Throwing the blankets to one side, Hiccup swung himself around to sit on the edge of his bed, ignoring his friend's surprised face.

"Enough of that dreary talk! Where did you say you put my packs?" The young woman frowned.

"I didn't," she replied shortly, a slight grin creeping across her smooth face.

Now it was Hiccup's turn to frown; this was _his _humour – he was the pedantic one, the witty little wart. She was the stalwart, strong warrior, serious and short-tempered –

"Fine," he said, meeting Astrid's cheeky grin with his own.

"Where are they, then?" The combination of his little nap and the long overdue admission of his homesickness during his period of exile had given the brown-haired hero some energy back.

Now that he was feeling refreshed and rejuvenated, he knew of just the thing with which to pass the time – it had been a long time since he had had a decent opponent against whom to place a good game of _Schach_.

Getting up from her seat, Astrid walked over to the end of Hiccup's bed and hauled out the boy's two rucksacks, which had been hidden in beside his workbench.

"What exactly was it that you wanted?" she asked curiously, glancing briefly at Hiccup as she untied the knot securing one of the bags.

"A small, wooden chest in that one that you're searching through now. It's about so big –" With a fancy, flourishing gesture, Astrid produced with her roving hand exactly what the young man was after.

"That's it," he said with a smile, taking the box from Astrid and sitting back on his bed with his – well, _leg _crossed.

His prosthesis lay untouched and forgotten on the hard floor, until it would be needed again.

"Do you have time?" Astrid was positively thrilled by the question.

"Of course! Mother's taken all of my usual chores off me for a month as a reward for my efforts in hauling your sorry –"

"Alright, alright, I get it!" Hiccup cut in with a snicker, as Astrid laughed out loud.

She was doing a really good job of brightening up his dismal, pain-wracked soul.

"Right. Move in a bit closer." Astrid shifted her chair to the side of the bed, as Hiccup moved back to lean against the wall beside his window, and unlatched the box, pouring its contents onto the bed.

"This," he said happily, picking up several of the small, wooden figures which lay on the soft furs, "is Schach." He looked up at Astrid's intrigued face, and smiled.

"And I'm going to teach you how to play."

* * *

_Now, people, I have a lot to say, so please see the AN following this chapter.__  
_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	4. Chapter Four

_Whoa, guess what?  
It's time for another chapter!  
_

_Exams are all over, now, and I've got a good three months or so with very little to do, so you can all expect a lot more chapters over the coming weeks!  
_

_Speaking of which, I think I'll go back to the old update schedule of a new chapter exery second Sunday, so the next one will be Sunday week - that's the 25th of November.  
_

_Given the long break, a good solid recap is in order...  
_

_With the Red Death destroyed, Vikings and Dragons united, and Hiccup now returned to the village, things finally seem to be ticking along nicely for everyone.  
_

_However, confusion still clouds the minds of many; Toothless is confronted with a decision he really would rather not make right now, Astrid cannot quite figure out how things will ever work out in her heart, and Hiccup...well, he's just doing his best to survive as the hero of the village.  
_

_Enjoy!  
_

* * *

_Chapter Four: Reparations and Preparations_

"Another one over there by the pathway! Tha's good! Yeah, perfect! Righ' there!"

Several days after his son's awakening, Stoick the Vast found himself doing what he did best – shouting at people.

Of course, no one minded a bit how loud his voice was.

The fact that his voice had brought down more snow in the high mountains than anyone else on his initiation day had only served to strengthen the others' opinions of him and secure his position as next in line as the chief of Berk.

It had also helped to win him a fine young lass – Viking women loved a man who could shout, and Valhallarama had been no exception.

Stoick paused in his instructing of the men how to set up the tables in the meadow for the banquet, lost in the chaotic mixture of both delightful and terrible memories.

The time he and his lovely wife had spent together had been far too short.

He could still remember with complete clarity the night a dragon raid had taken her from him, thrown her into the stormy seas around the isle, leaving nothing but her damaged armour, which she had discarded once it had become bent out of shape by a dragon's claw.

As unwilling as he was to let any part of her go, Stoick had taken the breastplate, repaired it and cleaned it up as best he could, and kept one half for his helmet, so that she would ever be close to him.

The other half he had given to Hiccup seven years ago...

Now the chieftain's thoughts turned to a different, although not entirely unrelated matter.

Hiccup was in his twenty-first year, and had grown up as well as any Viking could hope to.

Although he did not have the strong frame and huge beard of his father, the young man had clearly trained hard during his seven years away from the village, and was now in peak form...aside from the leg, of course.

Stoick still hated himself for driving his own son out, all those years ago, but a Viking chieftain could not get very far if he were unable to let go of the past.

So the Vast man had done just that.

Now that Hiccup was back, however...

It was high time he settled down as a proper member of the village of Berk, with a house of his own, and a good woman at his side.

Stoick could just picture his son's face at the idea.

"_Father, I can choose for myself! I don't need your help!_" Laughing at the sound of Hiccup's pleading voice in his head, the chief admitted that this imaginary response was both highly likely and very valid.

Hiccup could choose for himself, of this there was no doubt!

But who...?

There were plenty of strong, upcoming lasses, most of whom were a few years younger than the boy, and some of whom were a little older.

Given Hiccup's new reputation, good looks, and charming nature, Stoick was sure that none of them would care about the age gap.

Sadly though, there was no-one of his son's own age...no one who would be suitable, anyway.

The Hofferson girl was a fierce warrior, proud, strong and skilful, but she lacked the voice to stand before the village.

Beautiful, she was indeed, clever and cunning, eager to prove herself...but she was promised to Snotlout.

Coming back to his senses, Stoick looked out of the village meadow, all a bustle with Vikings hauling tables and setting up great roasting spits, and sighed.

Things would work themselves out – one way or another.

Trudging back into the village for a bite to eat, the Viking chieftain stared around his village.

Berk was changing so much!

"_What would the ancestors say if they found out we were having a banquet with dragons_?" he thought to himself, smiling as a Terrible Terror fluttered overhead, carrying a barrel of beer significantly larger than itself.

Even the dragons were pitching in with the preparations, helping out wherever they could, and without Hiccup having asked them, either!

That said, Stoick's son wasn't the only Viking who appeared to be communicating directly with the village's new inhabitants...

The town square was just as busy as the meadow.

Young Fishlegs had had the brilliant idea of constructing an icon in the centre of the village as a symbol of the new friendship blossoming between Vikings and dragons...and even Vikings and Vikings!

The entire population of Berk seemed to have taken this idea to heart, and there now stood a tall tower in the town square, adorned with Viking shields, tree branches collected by dragons, and even a few loose scales and spines which had been collected up from around where the reptiles spent most of their time.

Hiccup's return had brought the winds of change, for now everyone was happy, contented, joyful, even, to be sharing their village with dragons.

Perhaps one of the few Vikings who was not feeling as joyous as the rest (though cheery nonetheless) was Snotlout.

He had come across quite let down as Stoick had broken the news of his change in decision, but had perked up almost immediately, and was now pitching in with equal enthusiasm.

The chief imagined that the strong boy could not help feeling a little snubbed at this rather brutal turn of events, but...

He was a Viking.

Things like this were an occupational hazard, no?

Turning to walk up to his house from the town square, the Vast man caught a glimpse of a lithe black form darting from building to building, hiding in the alleyways as though trying desperately not to be seen.

Stoick had no idea what Toothless was trying to achieve, but it was amusing to watch nonetheless.

Every day, Hiccup's faithful Night Fury would choose a different member of the village to shadow, and he would follow them without pause or fail for sometimes up to an hour solid.

The chieftain had been one of only a few Vikings who had noticed this strange behaviour, though everyone seemed as stumped as the next when it came to deciphering the reasons for it.

Stoick had asked his son about it the day before, but Hiccup had simply grinned and tapped the side of his nose.

"_The meaning will become clear in due season, father._"

It was a shame, really, that Hiccup had not managed to lose one of his most annoying habits during his seven-year absence – his love of speaking in riddles.

Even though he was suddenly a model Viking, as fit and strong as any, the young man's interests appeared to have remained unaltered by the passage of time.

Seven years on, and Hiccup's love of tinkering with bizarre, incomprehensible contraptions had perhaps only grown.

This did, however, have its advantages.

Stoick was going to be shouting at a larger crowd than ever before that evening, as the size of the village had almost quadrupled with the massive influx of countless dragons from all around the northern countryside.

While most of them preferred to live outside of the village within the caves in the cliffs and mountain slopes, the vast majority would certainly be present at tonight's banquet – of this, he could be certain.

Having himself heard over all the ruckus would have been nigh impossible, were it not for the creative assistance of his own son, Hiccup the Useful.

But at least he was no longer trying to steal bread from the baker's.

_That_ had been an incident that Stoick would rather forget.

Making his way up the huge stone steps which led to door to the chieftain's residence, the Vast man thought back to that evening spent in the Mead Hall a few nights ago, when the Hofferson girl had summoned up the courage to relate her little adventure to the rest of the village.

Stoick had quite enjoyed the tale, chuckled with the everyone at some of the more amusing points, and felt generally proud that his son was such an independent boy.

He did not, however, know what to think about the part where Astrid had talked about the short duel she had had with Hiccup – the young woman had rubbed her neck nervously, and Stoick could remember thinking "_I hope he'll be able to control that anger now that he's home again_."

And there they were, at it again.

Why was he not surprised?

It was almost embarrassing to see the two of them there every day, and right outside the front of the chief's own house too!

Could it not be done privately?

"Your move."

"I know..."

"So make a move!"

"I'm thinking!"

"So think faster!"

Astrid looked like she was about to knock Ruffnut down right where she was sitting, and rightly so.

The blond twin could be quite impatient when it came to this Schach business – although Stoick had received quite a glare from his son the first time he had referred to it as 'business'.

Every single aspect of life had been business for so long that the idea of simply sitting down and playing a game with someone was entirely alien to the Viking chief.

Hiccup, however, recognised the importance of having a little fun once in a while, and had, to this end, introduced a number of the Vikings around his age to an intricate board-game he had brought back with him from his travels.

Schach appeared to involve a black and white spotted board ("It's called _chequered,_ father!"), a number of wooden figurines of different shapes and sizes, with equal numbers of dark and light ones, and an astoundingly complicated system of rules, whereby different pieces would hop around the board in different patterns and 'take' each other.

While Stoick believed that there was no substitute for a friendly stoush with a fellow Viking in the village meadow, the youngsters evidently thought otherwise, as they seemed to spend every waking hour arguing about whose turn it was to play against whom – Hiccup only had enough pieces for one set.

"Alright, there." Astrid finally made her move, and now it was Ruffnut's brow which became as furrowed as a longboat's bow.

The small group of young adults was gathered on one of the large, flat rocks near the door to Stoick's house.

Astrid and Ruffnut were seated directly in the middle, slumped over the Schach board, their faces tense with concentration.

To one side sat Snotlout, Tuffnut, Fishlegs and Eira, Fishlegs' fiancé.

Fishlegs was avidly explaining the rules of the game to the Jorgenson boy, who appeared to be drinking in every detail with bizarre enthusiasm, while Tuffnut and Eira whispered together and made slight hand gestures toward particular pieces on the board.

Only Hiccup was not engaged in any kind of social activity.

Stoick's son was sitting off to one side, sewing up a hole in one of his father's tunics and glancing occasionally towards the board, a peaceful, dreamy expression on his face.

"Blast, I think you got me there!" Ruffnut swore rather loudly, and Astrid leaned back against the wall of the house, basking in the sunlight and grinning in satisfaction at her irate opponent.

"I think so!" she replied, quite smug. "Hiccup?"

"Mph?"

"Did you see that?"

"See what?" Astrid rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"My move!" Hiccup looked up from his needle and thread to peer through his long fringe at the board.

"Oh yes. Well done..." he said vaguely, before turning straight back down at his sewing.

Astrid look outraged.

"You didn't even look!"

"Oh for the love of..." Hiccup sounded quite frustrated as he placed torn tunic to one side and hauled himself over towards the board.

"Firstly, _Astrid_," he said scathingly, glaring at the young woman, "dragging myself around the place actually still hurts my leg a little, and getting up from a sitting position is even worse, so if you don't have a decent reason for calling me over, kindly refrain from doing so!" Astrid looked rather abashed, but also a little stung by the venom in Hiccup's voice.

Stoick had never heard his son speak like this before.

It was almost impossible to believe that the little fishbone from all those years ago had developed a verbal bite.

"Secondly," Hiccup practically hissed, shifting a little closer to the timid young woman, his eyes narrowing, "I _did _see your move, I just refrained from commenting.

If memory serves correctly, one of the first rules I laid down about watching other people play Schach is that no-one, and I mean _no-one_ is allowed to say anything about the game which could potentially lead to one player having an advantage over the other!" The boy's face was now so close to Astrid's that their noses were almost touching.

Astrid went quite red in the face, and looked down at her lap.

She seemed to be almost close to tears...

"And thirdly," Hiccup said, his voice changing quite suddenly from the harsh and unexpected sting to a tone of cool and even less expected nonchalance, "I see Ruffnut has been picking up on how to play this game at a rather faster pace than you." Without another word, the chief's son leaned back, and turned to smile at Ruffnut, who was shifting the position of one of her wooden pieces, her face alight with an eager expectance.

"Schachmatt." It seemed as simple as that.

"Schachmatt indeed," chimed in Hiccup as he hauled himself back to sit on the warm, lush grass beside the tunic. "You've got a lot to learn, Astrid."

Stoick was utterly amazed.

Not only had his own son just acted in an uncharacteristically brutal and abhorrent manner, but Gunnar's daughter looked as though she were about burst into tears.

_Astrid Hofferson, _toughest of the recruits, the most skilled, fierce, and proud Viking within a decade either side of her own age, was slumped there over the Schach board with her hands clasped together in her lap, staring bleakly down at the little black and white wooden pieces.

Surely she was stronger than this.

Indeed, Stoick should have known better than to think such things, for a moment later the young woman raised her head and grinned at Ruffnut, all traces of shock and disappointment gone from her face.

"Well played Ruffnut. Well played indeed!" she said with a cheeky grin, holding out a hand to the female twin, who promptly shook it.

"At least you're learning," the latter replied, fiddling with her locks, "and the only way to go from here is up." She glanced at Hiccup, as though looking for approval.

"Isn't that right, Hiccup?"

"Mph?" The boy had gone back to his sewing, and was no longer concentrating on the game.

Ruffnut looked rather let down, while Astrid grinned and curled her hands into little fists of victory.

Stoick wasn't entirely sure what he was witnessing, but felt that, by now, he had watched from the shadows for long enough.

Figuratively speaking, of course – the sky was bright and cloudless – perfect weather for tonight's banquet.

"Well now, I see we're all back at it again. No surprises there, eh?"

"Chief – Stoick! I – we didn't see you there, sorry!"

The Vast man gave a polite chuckle as he approached the group, smiling at the half-dozen or so youngsters lounging around on the sun-baked stones.

"I'm not surprised. A Viking chieftain can conceal himself very well when he wished –"

"You weren't hiding! We're just inattentive." Stoick's gaze fell upon his son, who was grinning up at him cheekily.

"_You _couldn't make yourself scarce in an ocean of brown beards and muscles!" The chief gave his son what he hoped was a patronising look.

He could not remember Hiccup having ever been this cocky before.

He may be the village hero, and with a Viking's injury to show for it, but should nevertheless give respect where respect was due.

"Which just goes to show," Stoick spoke audaciously, locking eyes with his son, "that you lot are so absorbed in that game that you forget where you are...and who might be watching you." This appeared to have done the trick, for Hiccup looking positively outraged.

"Oy! I've been sitting quietly and mending this here tunic which _you _tore while wrestling with Spitelout only yesterday!" Stoick simply burst out laughing, adding more fuel to the fire.

Hiccup was now furious.

"My, oh my! You are easy to tease these days!" the Vast man choked, wiping a tear of amusement from his eye, while Hiccup scowled and lowered his gaze back to his knitting.

The others were starting to chuckle quietly, looking from Stoick to his son.

"Right!" the Viking chieftain shouted, causing everyone to jump, and Hiccup to prick his finger with the needle.

He swore rather loudly, attracting everyone's stares.

"Enough Schach for now! Come on you lot, go and help with the preparations! And Hiccup, I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't pollute the air around here with such vulgar language." The young man glowered and sucked his sore finger, while everyone else stood up slowly, groaning and stretching, and began one by one to wander off towards the village meadow.

"Hiccup, I don't want you helping – not with that injury of yours still so fresh. Maybe once things settle down a little –"

"Ugh! Father, honestly! I'm fine, and if you'd just let me do something to help then I could show –"

"Hiccup, this is not open for discussion!" This was at least the third or fourth time that father and son had knocked heads as to what Hiccup could feasibly do to help around the village – the boy clearly felt quite lazy at present.

Stoick would have been prepared to give the boy a few chores here and there, merely light work so as not to prolong his physical and emotional recovery from the limb loss, were it not for the fact that Hiccup seemed determined to force it into everyone's faces that he was as fit and able-bodied as ever, an idea which was simply ludicrous.

And if it sounded even a little far-fetched, it was out – Stoick had the final say in such matters.

"Fine," Hiccup mumbled, pushing himself back against the wall and hoisting himself slowly and meekly up onto his highly unusual pair of feet, wincing as the metal prosthesis pressed into the flesh below his knee.

Stoick noticed that Astrid was lingering a little, gazing worriedly at Hiccup.

"Go on, lass, you too. I'll look after Hiccup, don't you worry!" The young woman gave a tiny nod and a timid little smile, before turning away to follow the others down the hill towards the town square.

As she went, however, Stoick noticed her raise a hand to her forehead and grimace with what appeared to be pain, scratching just above her fringe in earnest.

It was the third time he had seen this behaviour from exactly the same person, and each and every time it awoke within him the same concern – was this another young Viking trying to conceal a tragic injury and suffering all the while?

Turning back to his son, his mouth open and the question half-formed on his tongue, Stoick saw that Hiccup was also looking at Astrid's retreating figure with concern in his eyes.

"I know – I saw it too," he spoke quietly, upon meeting his father's curious stare.

"I'm not sure what's ailing her, but it's certainly an injury of some kind. I saw Runa fussing over her yesterday morning..."

"Ach, she's a tough one, that Astrid. She'll be fine."

"Aye," replied Hiccup, sounding for the first time ever just like his father, with the deep rumble of a chief's voice, with even the inner wisdom shining through.

"She will be." For a few moments, Hiccup continued to stare after Astrid's disappearing figure, his brow furrowed.

"_Just genuine, friendly concern,_" Stoick thought, pushing that quaint notion out of his mind.

"_Nothing to be worried about _–"

"– Which brings me nicely to mah next point, Hiccup, " finished the chief out loud, and Hiccup gave his father a look which clearly said '_what now?_' "I wanted to ask you about the way you talked to Astrid just now –" The young man immediately scowled once more, not meeting Stoick's gaze.

"Gah! I'm sorry, father, but sometimes she just _really _gets on my nerves! I know it was rude of me to act like that, but –" Hiccup stopped and stared in disbelief as his father began to chuckle, and then burst out laughing.

"What?" he snorted, trying to keep the grin off his own face; he still couldn't quite work out what was so funny.

"Oh, Hiccup, I guess you'll always be my little boy, my one and only – ouch!" For Hiccup apparently did _not _like the idea of being papa's '_little boy_' any more.

The young man now stood as tall as his father, and could match him blow for blow, or so Stoick liked to believe.

This fist to the shoulder seemed to prove his point.

"Hiccup," the Vast man spoke lovingly, wiping his watering eyes and rubbing his sore shoulder while his son glowered at him, "son, you need to stop caring so much about what other people think of you! You're the hero of the village, for Thor's sake, with an injury to show for it and a whole lot of nasty memories to reinforce your position as Berk's idol! People round here are going to be pretty accepting of how you act towards them, regardless of how harsh it may seem. Odin knows we all deserve it, and some more than others –"

"Father, don't start with that again, please. It took me so long to get Astrid to stop apologising to me, please don't make me go through the whole experience again. I don't think I could bare it." Hiccup was staring mournfully at the ground, and for the first time since his son's return, Stoick began to feel sorry for the young man.

Not because of his neglected past or his crippling injury, but because Hiccup was not the kind of boy who could cope well with the attention of the entire village upon him, regardless of whether it admiration or aversion that he was receiving.

"Look," said Stoick quietly, placing a consoling hand upon his son's shoulder, "if it helps, I actually approve of the way you've been handling all the attention. It certainly hasn't gone to your head, that's a start! And if you feel the need to rage at something – or someone every so often to keep yourself sane, then Astrid's the girl to go for. That lass just seems to suck all of the anger and sadness out of the people around her and bounce back just as cheerful as she was before." Hiccup yawned pointedly.

He was obviously still not used to the idea of having long and meaningful conversations with his own father, and Stoick could respect that.

"Regardless," he finished in heavy tones in an attempt to mock his own occasionally displeased manner, "you keep those profanities in your mouth, alright? I doubt very much that anyone in Valhalla swears like you do –"

"Fine, fine, I get it!" There was a moment's silence between them, in which Stoick gazed dismally at his downhearted son, and Hiccup stared pointedly at the ground, his eyes wandering between his two dissimilar feet –

But before the chief had realised what he was doing, he took a step forward and grasped his beloved son with both arms, pulling him into a tremendous hug.

Hiccup hesitated for only a moment, before returning the squeeze with rip-cracking strength – before now, the boy had seemed to shun all physical contact with any other Vikings.

Even when he had first awoken and stepped outside to meet the grateful villagers and dragons who had assembled to greet their hero, Stoick had felt him recoil from the embrace he had given Hiccup at the time.

It seemed that the young man was finally starting to feel like Berk was really his home.

"I'm sorry," the chief spoke quietly, "for – for everything." For once, Hiccup did not simply fob the apology off as a waste of breath, and he even hugged a little tighter.

"Yeah, me too father..." The two of them simply stood there in one huge, crushing embrace for a few seconds longer, before Hiccup suddenly exclaimed "Wait, what have _I_ got to be sorry for?" And with that the two of them dissolved into fits of laughter, the bond of family love between them completely restored.

A little while later, Stoick found himself reflecting upon everything that had come to pass, while munching on a leg of lamb and drinking beer from his favourite mug in the Mead Hall.

"_Sharing our village with dragons! What would the ancestors say?_"

The chief was finally starting to realise that it didn't matter what the ancestors would say about the new friendship blossoming between Vikings and dragons – Hiccup had shown him this much.

"_But I sure am glad that you're not making me chief!_" the boy had laughed after the two had broken apart.

"_I doubt I'd do a very good job of it!_" Stoick had said nothing, and merely smiled in response.

The decision had been made – there was no going back now.

* * *

_Again, people, sorry for the long break, but I'm sure you all appreciate the continuation of the story!_

_As usual, comments and reviews are encouraged. You've all been really great, I've had some wonderful feedback to incorporate into my writing style and later chapters. Thank you!  
_

_Next chapter on (or around) the 25th of November.  
_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	5. Chapter Five

_'Tis time for another chapter!_

_I'm very tired, and want to go to bed now, so I'm not going to do a recap this week, sorry.  
Besides, it's all progressing fairly slowly at the moment, and will be for the next while.  
_

* * *

_Chapter Five: The Banquet_

Hiccup was feeling rather proud of himself.

He had managed to walk all the way into the forest by himself to bathe in the cool creek by the shaded glades below the mountain's slopes.

His leg wasn't even aching, and that was after a good hour of exercises for his whole form – Hiccup was determined not to let the blasted prosthesis slow him down.

He would stay fit and strong, regardless.

In fact, taking off his clothes had been the most difficult part of the journey.

After a long and frustrating struggle with his own pants, Hiccup had found himself lying on flat on his back on the dewy grass beside the stream flailing his legs in the air in desperation.

He, however, been victorious, and now his leather trousers lay forgotten on the banks of the creek while their owner immersed himself in the deepest pool he could find.

It was cold.

Bitterly cold.

But Hiccup could bare it.

He was used to these kinds of temperatures.

"So much better..." he breathed, feeling the sweat and grime from several days of sitting in sun being simply washing away, leaving him with the feeling of pure, fresh cleanliness.

It was divine indeed –

"Hiccup?" The young man felt as though his heart simply stopped for a moment.

That voice, the familiar female voice...he did _not _want it's owner around while he was bathing naked in the creek.

"No!" he called out in reply. "I'm not available at the moment, sorry! Just leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!"

There was a soft breeze of tinkling laughter in the air for just a second, before the voice replied "Alright then! I'll wait until you get out!"

Hiccup felt his temper rising, and could almost imagine the water heating up and evaporating around him from the pure energy of his irritation.

Here was a girl who could _really _get on his nerves.

He couldn't see her anywhere around, but new that she must be close, behind a nearby tree perhaps.

A few minutes later, Hiccup was enjoying the icy waters far less than he would have been had he been left _alone_.

It seemed to be a very hard thing for anyone to do for him these days; he was forever being dogged by curious children, praising adults or hopeful teenagers, ever seeking his advice and approval.

In all honesty, Hiccup found it quite disgusting.

He had become, to use the southern term, a kind of _celebrity_.

He was the subject of all chatter, the highest priority of all matters, the biggest icon in the village – and not just _his _village.

Word had begun to spread of his victory over the Red Death and of Berk's new friendship with the dragon race, and several other Viking townships had already made clear that they were going to try to make peace with their local dragon populations.

Some had sent back correspondences that their initial attempts at diplomacy with the winged reptiles had failed, and most had requested some form of assistance from Hiccup, and those that hadn't, had at least pleaded for advice...

"Alright," Hiccup called out to the surrounding bushes, "I'm getting out now and I'll be dressed in a couple of minutes. Just be patient."

"Right-o then!"

Hiccup soon found that putting his clothes back on was far easier than removing, and was soon fully covered once more, with his cold prosthesis jammed back on to below his left knee.

"All done then.

You can come on out!" Setting off in the direction of Berk, Hiccup barely flinched as the blond woman strode out from behind a large crop of shrubs to smile at him.

He returned her grin with a nod and a cheerful wave.

"Would you like to accompany me back to the village?"

"Oh, most certainly. I didn't come all this way for nothing!"

"Very well," the young man spoke drily, "just try not to fall behind." His companion chuckled, and Hiccup forced a grin.

Plodding back through the shaded forests, the pair seemed content to walk in silence for the most part.

The Viking woman appeared contented, happy to simply be in his presence, while Hiccup was simply trying to avoid any kind of conversation – this was hardly a comfortable situation for him.

He did begin to wonder, however, why she had tracked him down in the first place...he wasn't exactly hard to find in the village during the day.

Follow the incessant chattering of amused children, and one would usually find Hiccup at the source, trying his very best to keep his little _caravan_ amused –

"So...you're back to stay now, eh?" Hiccup frowned a little.

The last time he checked, this was obvious to everyone.

Maybe she was just using it as a stepping stone over deep water...

"Yes," Hiccup replied plainly, "I don't think I'll be going anywhere else in a while." He glanced down at his prosthetic leg. "Not that I could, even if I wanted to..." The blond Viking gave him a warm, consoling smile.

"But you traded your leg for the lives of several hundred Vikings. We all owe you so much, Hiccup..." This sentence stirred something within the brown-haired boy, and he frowned again.

"Have we not had this conversation before?" he asked with a sideways glance and half-grin, causing his companion to turn a little red in the face.

Hiccup was getting quite perturbed by all this blushing...

It hinted at the rise and release of memories that he would rather keep locked away.

"Maybe," the young woman replied with a gentle laugh.

"But just remember, Hiccup, that we're in your debt. All of us."

The two of them had now left the shaded confines of the forests and were coming up on the outskirts of the village.

Everywhere Hiccup looked, Vikings and dragons were bustling to and fro, carrying long benches and tables, armfuls of firewood, casks of beer and armfuls of sheep.

It appeared that Stoick was taking his celebratory banquet very seriously...although the evening was going to be far from serious, what with hordes of friendly dragons sharing in the food and festivities.

Hiccup thought back to the one time he had seen Toothless after the Night Fury had had a little too much to drink, and chuckled inwardly.

Berk's dragon population might be all too eager to help with the preparations now, but once they had had their surfeit of beer...

"What is it?" The voice seemed to float into his mind like a dandelion on the gentlest of breezes, and Hiccup's musings faded away.

He blinked and turned to stare at the young woman beside him.

He shook his head and shivered a little, as a slight breeze brushed against his bare face.

"We're in for an interesting night," Hiccup stated simply, smiling down at the ground.

He could feel the blond Viking's eyes upon him, but could not meet her gaze.

Every time he did it became more and more awkward.

"Just remember," she said quietly, placing a smooth hand on his shoulder and causing Hiccup to look up at her.

"If you ever need anything, anything at all..." The young woman smiled sweetly, the most enchanting smile...

"I'm here." And without another word, the Viking warrior turned on the spot, bright, yellow hair whipping in the breeze, and marched off to assist with the preparations.

Hiccup sighed, and set off for the forge – he had a couple of things which needed finishing up there.

Besides, a hard stint of concentrated crafting did help to detach the mind from the world of emotional turmoil which he currently inhabited.

Looking back over his shoulder, Hiccup gazed at the little nuisance who had followed him through the forest.

His eyes traced over her golden locks, down her curved sides and hips, onto her –

Pinching himself angrily, Hiccup swung around and set a furious pace for the forge near the centre of the village.

Ruffnut may have become a kind, gentle and beautiful woman at heart, but she just wasn't...

She wasn't Astrid.

* * *

"Hiccup? Are you in there?"

"_Really? Is there no peace to be found in any corner of Midgard at this time?_"

"Hiccup?"

"No," the brown-haired boy called out, extremely irritated, "Hiccup is not available right now. Just leave a message outside the door and I'll get back to you as soon as I can."

There was a faint, tinkling laugh, before the voice sounded again.

"Oh, alright then. I was just going to –"

"Fine, fine! Come on in! Gods! But be quiet and don't touch _anything_!" The creaking of wood could just be heard above the sound of Hiccup's hammer, but the young man refused to look around from his position at the workbench; he was far too focussed right now to care about anything else, or anyone else, for that matter.

Anyone...

Except for Astrid.

Relaxing his muscles and calming his mind, Hiccup carefully placed his tools down and swivelled on his stool to face the other way.

Astrid could be seen making her way through the numerous heaps of misshapen metals and wooden discard.

Hiccup gave her a warm smile, which the young woman returning with a slight shiver.

The warm Spring morning was fast dissolving into a day of fierce, biting winds and flecks of hail.

Hiccup wasn't surprised to see her wearing a thick, sheepskin coat over her traditional green vest, brown skirt and spiked armour.

Astrid's new axe was even swinging from her belt, an unexpected sight, given how irate her Nadder had been seeing the young human with her new weapon – a sharp axe had been the bane of many a dragon from the Time of Warring, a fact which none of the dragons were forgetting in a hurry.

Hiccup had heard all about the frequent dragon raids on Berk during his seven-year absence, and was starting to wonder more and more just how trusting these two races really were of each other now.

It seemed so..._unlikely _that humans and dragons could go from being mortal foes to bosom friends and kindred beings in less than a month.

Yet, here he was, watching little Viking babies being nudged forward to take their first steps by both a joyous mother and her Icebolt companion.

Burnt houses were being rebuilt at tremendous rates due to the fantastic teamwork between tough Viking builders and their strong Gronckle counterparts.

And now The normally clear village meadow was being transformed in the space of a single day into a great gathering of tables, chairs and bonfires, with both dragons and humans pitching in and working fantastically alongside one-another.

But Spineless had still gnashed her teeth and shaken her scales at the sight of Astrid's new battleaxe.

"_I'm sorry my lovely, but I'm afraid we Vikings are going to keep our weapons. You never know when you may end up needing a sharp blade._" Spineless huffed and stalking away, shaking her tail irritably, and Hiccup chuckled in amusement as Astrid turned to give him a sly grin.

But the young man had been more amazed by Astrid's naming of her dragon friend "_my lovely_"...

It had sent his mind into a spiral –

"Er...Hiccup?" The image in his mind's eye imploded, and Hiccup flicked his gaze to the blond Viking standing before him.

"Hi..." he said uncertainly, while Astrid chuckled.

"You know, you don't seem to have much of a concentration span. Every time I'm around, you just seem to zone out entirely."

"Mph." Hiccup couldn't think of anything better to say – what Astrid had told him was entirely true, but not for the reasons she was thinking. Well...

"Anyway," she said with a smile, hands clasped behind her back, "watcha doin'?" She made to peer over his shoulder, and suddenly Hiccup realised that he would much rather keep this little project out of sight and out of mind until it was built to completion and ready to be used to full effect.

"Ah, er..." he mumbled, stepping from side to side as Astrid tried to look past him at the workbench, blocking the young woman's view.

"Hey! I want to –"

"I'd like to keep it a secret, if you don't mind...just until it's finished."

Astrid stopped straining to see past Hiccup and gave the boy a mischievous grin.

Hiccup was utterly smitten, and for a moment he gave serious consideration to revealing his project to Astrid prematurely.

"Oh please, I promise I won't tell anyone –"

"No," he said slowly and with some difficulty, "I'm sorry, but it's much better off staying a secret until it's complete."

Astrid's smile drooped, and the blond woman seemed to wilt a little, before she perked up and gave him a cheerful smile.

"Are you excited for tonight?" Hiccup stared in confusion for a moment, before remembering what was planned for the evening.

"Oh! The banquet? Well..."

This was a tough answer to give; on one hand, Hiccup hated large, rowdy crowds of merry drunkards, but on the other hand, it was an event to celebrate the unification of two _very_ different races.

That, and Astrid was going to be there.

But there was another reason, hidden beneath the layers of times gone by, shrouded in pain and longing.

Crowds of people gathering to honour and recognise his achievements...something was beginning to stir within his bosom, something which was best left untouched.

When Hiccup failed to reply at all, his gaze dropping down to between Astrid's feet, the young woman's smile faded once more, and she reached forward and placed a tentative hand on his shoulder.

"Look, Hiccup, I know things must still be really awkward for you around here sometimes, but you have to come –"

"It's not that –" Hiccup's voice was blunt and sour, and when he looked back up at Astrid, he saw that she was looking at him reproachfully, with just a trace of fear tainting her concerned gaze.

"It's – not that simple." "Astrid, there are times when I can't help but be reminded of the places I stayed and the people I knew while I was in exile. And, as..._unfortunate_ as it sounds, many of those memories I would sooner forget, lest they stir old pains and emotions." Astrid tilted her head to one side, her expression unchanged.

Hiccup was suddenly very conscious of her hand upon his shoulder, but he continued nevertheless.

"Some of the things I am forced to recall make me wish that I had died in that inferno on the Dragon's Island." The young woman' face immediately portrayed her shock and resentment at this statement, but Hiccup cut her hurt retort off.

"And some of them...some of them make me wish I had never lived in the first place..." His voice cracked with emotion, and for a moment he felt as though he were simply going to break down and start crying his heart out.

The names, the faces, all of them so clear and cold in his mind, their dead voices calling to him from across the void –

But then all of a sudden, a great warmth engulfed him and shielded him from the pains of the past.

Hiccup held on for dear life, clutching at the straws of hope which even now seemed to be slipping away from beneath his fingers –

– And mere moments after the memories struck him, they were fading away, the trauma soothed and ushered back into the confines of his subconscious mind.

Then they were gone completely.

* * *

Astrid didn't really know what it was that had pushed her to hold him, but in the brief moments of Hiccup's recollection, the young woman had seen something...something in his eyes...something which had frightened her far more than a the sharp claws of a thousand angry dragons or even the evil grey eyes of the Red Death.

She had, for a moment, not known what to do – but it hadn't been her mind, but rather her heart that had pushed her to take the boy in her arms and hold him, giving him back some of the care and compassion which he had given her back on the tallest tower of the hollow bastion.

Several minutes passed, with the two of them simple standing there in a tight embrace.

Hiccup was shaking a little, but once he began to quieten down, the boy took a deep breath and relaxed.

Whatever it was that had suddenly threatened to take away his soul and sanity was gone...for now.

"You alright?" Astrid asked quietly, her head resting on his shoulder.

Hiccup took a deep breath before replying.

"Yeah, I am now. Thanks to you." Astrid felt a huge rush of joy at these words, and she hugged him even tighter, savouring the boy's presence.

"Good," she replied simply, "that's good..."

* * *

Hiccup was starting to feel a little uncomfortable.

Not physically, no, Astrid's tight hold upon him was reminding him fondly of another who had once held him so.

And while these memories were so much lighter than those which had so viciously assaulted him before...

"Astrid, thank you," he said quietly, hoping to get his message across without seeming at all rude.

"You know," Hiccup mused, looking straight at Astrid, "I was just thinking about the day I – _we _first returned to Berk.

You know, an hour or so before the Battle of the Nest." Astrid shifted uncomfortably on her feet, unsure of how to react.

Hiccup blundered on.

"I was both surprised and impressed by the way you handled the sceptics and denialists in the crowd...you lost your temper by just the right degree.

Not enough to become as shamefully enraged and...dangerous as...as I can sometimes, but you showed enough anger and force to impress properly on the Vikings that dragons really did pose no threat."

Astrid smiled, and her cheeks took on the familiar shade of flushed pink.

She looked away with half a smile playing across her smooth face, and Hiccup felt a huge confidence boost.

"You did Thor proud that day, thundering just as well as he would."

* * *

Hiccup watched her go with the slightest hint of regret biting at the edges of his conscience.

They had been alone together in the forge.

Simply put, it had been the perfect opportunity for him to try and express himself properly – to try and explain his feelings.

"_I'll see you at the banquet then._"

He was so sure Astrid would have understood, that she would have accepted his statements – but the fear of rejection and estrangement had too strong a grasp upon his common sense to let this happen – yet.

At least he was aware of all this.

"_Yeah...see you!_"

But had Astrid not already made it clear enough that she thought of Hiccup as more than just a friend?

Was she _really _someone to be so afraid of?

And could he even be sure that his inner decision was right?

In fact, wasn't she promised to Snotlout?

The mental jousting continued for quite some time – time enough for Hiccup to set his things to one side, eat his lunch, and go back to work without even realising what he was doing.

Soon enough, afternoon began to give way to evening, with the rough breezes from earlier subsiding and leaving a cool but strangely pleasant air in the village of Berk.

The faint sounds of hundreds of flapping wings could be heard at all times now, and the buzz of chatter and squawking from the meadow grew louder with the deepening dusk.

Sighing with frustration, Hiccup placed down his tools once more, and headed home to change into something more decent.

This banquet was turning out to be more of a pain in the rear than even he had foreseen.

But the young man had no idea just how much of an impact this simple celebration of racial unity would have on him.

* * *

As the laughter finally began to die down, Stoick the Vast rose from his chair, holding up his hands for silence.

Taking a curiously shaped wooden tube from Gobber, he pretended to stare at the thing in confusion, as though trying to work out which end was which.

An appreciative murmur of amusement arose from the crowd.

Putting the oddly fashioned tree branch up to his mouth, the chief now addressed the huge menagerie of Vikings and dragons.

"Right," he boomed, the man's normally monstrous voice amplified to a thunderclap by the wooden cone, "my son tells me that this thing will make me shout even louder!" Everyone roared with laughter.

"And it seems he's right!" Stoick's voice seemed to tear the very air asunder, exploding over the din of the throng before him.

Hiccup muttered irritably to himself.

Motioning once again for some level of silence, the great chieftain now turned to his right and smiled down at his son.

"It's time, Hiccup," he spoke softly, eyes brimming with tears of pride. "Up you get!" The young man was stunned.

"W-What?" he began to stutter, but his father reached down and hauled the brown-haired hero to his feet by the scruff of his neck.

But he was almost immediately flattened again by a huge blast of shouting and cheering from the enormous throng assembled before him.

"Go on, Hiccup!" he heard his father coax him "Enjoy the moment!

You deserve it!" Raising a small hand in modest acknowledgment, the boy's heart melted as the cheering rose once again to deafening levels, the entire crowd giving him thunderous applause.

"My fellow Vikings and dragons!" Stoick shouted over the din, and everyone began to settle down, preparing for one of his infamous speeches. "We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of two faithful – hold on..." he faltered as a great shout of laughter arose, "tha's not the right one, is it? Let me start again!"

As the noise dropped back down to slightly less earbustingly loud levels, the chief gave a loud chuckle.

"My fellow Vikings and dragons! We are gathered here to pay tribute to a true hero of the day!"

"Hiccup! Hiccup!" the great throng immediately began to chant, with even the hordes of dragons roaring their affection to the starry, night sky.

It took several minutes to calm everyone down again.

"That's right!" Stoick boomed, his eyes once again brimming with tears.

"Young Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, my only son and child, who single-handedly defeated the colossal Red Death dragon in the skies above the dragon's nest –" But from above the crowd's excited chattering came a terrific roar, and Hiccup laughed at the look of pure outrage on Toothless' face, visible even amongst the countless humans and dragons around him.

"Well, _almost _single-handedly!" the chief admitted with a slight grin, not unlike his son's own, cheeky smirk, and the Night Fury sat back down, still simmering irritably.

"As I was saying," Stoick continued, almost as though there had been no interruption, "My own son and his dragon friend are together responsible for the death of what would have possibly been the greatest threat Berk has ever known, not to mention the enslaver of dragonkind –!"

"Just hold on one second, father!" Hiccup butted in, earning himself an appalled stare from his father.

Putting his fingers up to his mouth, the young man whistled shrilly out over the crowd to get Toothless' attention, before calling out loudly, "Come on bud!

You should be up here, too!" And from across the field, he saw Toothless' ears instantly pick up, as the black dragon sprang up and out from his rather comfortable position amongst the many young, slender, seductive female dragonesses who had so generously decided to share with him their company for the evening.

"Night Fury!"

"Get down!"

The familiar cry went up as Toothless bounded across the throng, bowling over countless Vikings and smaller dragons in his enthusiastic rush to get to Hiccup and his father at the head of the main table.

Reaching his rider, the Night Fury wagged his tail and wiggled in anticipation like an overgrown puppy.

"Come on, you big beasty! Come here!" Toothless bounded over the table, landing beside Hiccup, and wrapped his tail around the young man, licking him affectionately.

The crowd gave a great sigh of affection as the look on Hiccup's face turned from one of joy to one of outright disgust as dragon drool began to ooze down his face.

"That'll do bud!" he growled, shoving Toothless' nose away from his own, and the dragon settled for simply standing beside his rider and soaking up the attention.

"_As I was saying_," began Stoick again for the second time, somewhat annoyed, "due to Hiccup's amazing feat of courage and ingenuity in his battle with the Red Death, and his noble and selfless sacrifice for all of us, especially considering what it has cost him _personally_," the chief paused for breath, and Hiccup almost thought he could feel the gaze of everyone present upon his prosthetic leg.

"Because of this, I have decided, after much deliberation and discussion with the village elders..." He really seemed to be labouring the point, Hiccup noted with amusement; this speech had almost certainly been written by someone else on the village council, most likely Astrid's father Gunnar...he was good with words.

"We have decided," boomed Stoick, his voice now heavy with pride, "to name Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third as my successor as chief of the Hairy Hooligans and next in line as –"

But what he had intended to say was never known, for the chief's last words were drowned out by a rising roar of cheering and shouting from the great crowd.

Everywhere he looked, Hiccup could see Vikings shouting their praise and congratulations to him, and even the dragons looked like they could understand what was going on, for most were now roaring along with their human friends, and some were even attempting to _clap_, bashing their claws together in an hilarious imitation of the villagers' applause.

Searching the crowd, Hiccup picked out a great many familiar faces.

The twins were shouting and cheering themselves hoarse, with their respective fiancés joining in with equal enthusiasm, while Fishlegs cried silently into a handkerchief to one side, seemingly overcome with emotion.

Even Snotlout was whooping and catcalling, thumping the table with his fist...and what appeared to be a whole fish which he had stolen from Fireworm.

There was no sign of any jealousy or envy on his brutish features whatsoever, and this was indeed a comforting sight.

But finally, Hiccup's eyes found exactly whom they were searching for.

Astrid was smiling brightly up at him from another table, her face shining with joy, her hands slowly clapping with the rest of the crowd.

Tilting her head to one side, she began to laugh, her voice mingling with the great throng assembled out in the field behind the Viking village of Berk.

Grinning back at her, Hiccup tried his very best not let his new feelings show through, not to let her see how unsettled he was.

But, somehow, through the hazy night air which mingled with the smoke of countless small fires, Astrid once again found a way to see into his heart.

Her smile faded a little, as it clicked that there was still something awry, and Hiccup quickly averted his gaze, seeking elsewhere for something...anything to draw his attention away from this beautiful woman.

Having finished his speech, Stoick promptly sat back down, though with a little too much force, shattering the chair upon which he was meant to be sitting into thousands of tiny wooden splinters and drawing shouts of laughter from the crowd.

Toothless immediately leaped off the table and back over to where he had been lazing, disappearing almost instantly into the swarm of slender female dragons which batted their eyelids and shied away with an almost mock feminine nature.

As the crowd now began to dissolve back into smaller groups surrounding individual fires, Hiccup climbed cautiously off the table, only to find himself confronted by Gobber, who, despite having already emptied an entire barrel of beer seemed to be somehow still standing.

That said, his Terrible Terror Burp seemed to have quite a taste for the stuff, and would have likely assisted the blacksmith in finishing the cask off.

Hiccup just couldn't stand the taste, not since that nasty incident a couple of years back involving –

"Congratulations lad!" He practically yelled into the boy's ear, and Hiccup flinched at the heart-stopping combination of drunken Viking yelling and stench of beer.

As Gobber wandered off into the crowd, and Stoick turned away to discuss the important matter of organising drinking competitions with the larger Vikings of the tribe, Hiccup found himself face to face with Old Helga.

The wizened old lady was leaning on her gnarled stick and peering up at him through narrowed eyes, a slight smile of curiosity further creasing her already gnarled features.

"Something yet ails you, young Hiccup," she stated simply, and the boy sighed.

"Elder, may I speak freely?"

"Of course you may, dear! I'm not your father, and I certainly won't tell him anything you say, if you so wish."

"It's just that..." Hiccup wasn't sure he had the words to describe what he was now feeling.

"Everyone thinks I'm a hero! I defeated the Red Death, but only because I had Toothless at my side and Astrid there to encourage me! In the past, all I've ever done is mess things up, and if you knew half of what happened while I was in exile these last seven years, you'd see that nothing really changed! The truth is that I just don't think I'm cut out to be chief...if you judge me by my track record then you'd see that Snotlout would actually be a much better – what...?" Hiccup's rant subsided as the elder began to laugh quietly, shaking her head.

"Hiccup! You silly thing you!" she cackled. "You aren't even chief yet, and you're _already_ putting yourself down!

Look closer at the situation, and I think you'll find things to be so much simpler and easier than you are making them out to be!" Hiccup opened his mouth, but then closed it again, unsure of what to say; she had caught him completely off guard.

"Firstly," she said, holding up a single, twisted finger, "you were unjustly exiled by a blind father who put archaic traditions before the happiness of his own son, a boy simply wished to see peace between Vikings and dragons, and was thrown out for it! In my eyes that makes you a _far _better candidate for chief than Stoick_ ever _was!"

Hiccup frowned. "But that's not –"

"Secondly," she cut in, holding up another digit, "you came back to help those who had done nothing but mocked and persecuted you for your entire childhood! That shows nothing but a good, kind heart, one belonging to someone who is both willing and able to forgive and forget! And thirdly," she continued, barely stopping for breath, now practically shoving her three upheld fingers up his nose, "you killed the greatest threat that Berk would ever have known! Yes, you had help, but no-one ever expected you to do it alone! And the fact that you rode not just a dragon but a _Night Fury _into battle against this Red Death proves beyond all reasonable doubt that you have what it takes to secure a lasting, prosperous peace between humans and dragons! You get my point?"

"I don't –"

"_You get my point_?"

Hiccup sighed in acquiescence.

"Yes elder, I get your point." The old lady smiled caringly.

"Whether you believe me or not, whether you agree or not, does not really matter. For I know that, inside that smart head of yours," she stretched up and tapped Hiccup's forehead several times with a bony finger, "there is a real leader waiting to be revealed." The young man rolled his eyes.

"I wonder who he is..." he mumbled sarcastically.

"That's the spirit!" the elder cackled once again, now looking rather deranged. "Well, at least _someone _thinks you're up to the job!" And without another word, she began to hobble away.

"Wait! What do you –?"

"Hiccup!" The boy started at the sound of his name, or rather at the voice that had spoken it.

Turning back around, he saw Astrid Hofferson winding her way through the crowd towards him, carrying two mugs...supposedly one for each of them.

But no sooner had he set eyes upon her, was the boy smitten and completely disarmed.

Devoid of her usual armoured skirt, steel shoulder pads and tough fur vest, Astrid was wearing a bright blue skirt and matching gown.

Her hair, usually constrained by that tight fitting headband, seemed to have been set loose, and now flowed down over her shoulders like loose strands of pure gold.

Without exception, it was the most enchanting sight Hiccup had ever seen.

And her _smile_...

It took Hiccup several seconds to realise that he had been staring, his mouth hanging slightly agape, and he started upon realising that she was now standing before him, holding one of the cups out to him with a smile.

"Hiccup? Is something wrong?" The boy breathed deeply, shaking his head.

"Hardly," he lied, mirroring her smile with his own.

"Now," he said, gesturing with what he hoped was casual abandon to the mug in her hand, "what's this all about?"

Astrid's smile wavered a little, uncertainty creeping over her smooth face.

"A – a toast? I thought, perhaps, a drink was in order. You did, after all...you know..." She tilted her head to one side, her smile fading completely.

"Hiccup, what's going?"

But Hiccup felt sick to the pit of his stomach.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled, "I can't do this." And without another word, he turned away and limped off through the throngs of Vikings and dragons who so jubilantly celebrated his heroism, completely unaware of the boy's emotional turmoil.

Although his gaze flickered very briefly over Astrid's face before turning elsewhere, Hiccup was saddened to see the hurt and bewildered look upon her face.

For what seemed like years, Astrid stood as still as a statue, both cups still clasped in her hands.

As the waves of shock slowly began to subside, she lowered her head to the ground, trying desperately to control her feelings.

"_He's just_..." she fought with herself, seeking ever to justify and console, "_he's still not..._" But the tremendous infuriation which she now felt could no longer be tamed.

Hiccup's behaviour was no longer excusable.

"_Hero or not,_" she fumed inwardly, placing the mugs of mead down upon the nearest table, "_he's got no right to act this way!_" As the final strings of self control snapped, Astrid's face twisted into an angry snarl, and she stormed off after the boy.

In spite of his head start, the boy's injury would prevent him from escaping her wrath.

She knew exactly where he was going.

* * *

_Alright, so it's a fortnightly update schedule until further notice - I may have to slow things down a bit soon in order to let my writing get a little way ahead._

_Also, I've been having some inspiration shifts recently. Anyone know much of Avatar: the Last Airbender? And I'm not talking about the shoddy live-action film that they made, I'm referring to the amazing cartoon series - it's really quite astounding, and I'd recomment it highly, especially as I might soon be dividing my writing time into two sections, one for this story, and one for my planned fanfiction based around that universe.  
_

_Regardless, this tale will go on!  
_

_Reivews and comment encouraged! I hope you're all enjoying the story.  
_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	6. Chapter Six

_Hey guys and girls, sorry about the delay in the posting of this next chapter - I was somewhat ill yesterday.  
_

_So, in the last chapter, the Viking village of the Hairy Hooligans held a banquet to celebrate and commemorate (is that how you spell it?) their new union with the dragons against whom they had so long fought.  
_

_Stoick, having had a most bizarre change of heart, announces that he wishes Hiccup to become the chief after him, which everyone, except for Hiccup, is thrilled about.  
_

_A little later, Hiccup inevitably runs into Astrid, but he is feeling aweful about the whole situation, and disappears - but an irate Astrid will not be put off so easily...  
_

* * *

_Chapter Six: Night of Fate_

Hiccup swore loudly as his leg gave way yet again.

With the din of the party fading slowly into the distance as he dragged himself painfully up the hill, the young man experienced for the first time ever just how difficult it was to climb the grassy slope up to his house without anyone to support him.

"Gah!" he cried out in agony, once again staggering forward onto all fours.

Hiccup was already starting to regret his decision to leave the party early, even though staying would have simply meant more of the same ogling teenage girls and tremendous fuss and ruckus.

He couldn't stand it.

Any of it.

Gasping with pain, he glanced up the hill through the darkness towards the tantalising peace and quiet of his own home.

"What I wouldn't give," he hissed angrily, "to just be –"

"Hiccup?" The boy started with fright, collapsing yet again onto his hands and knees.

But as his vision began to blur with tears of pain, he felt a pair of soft, warm hands wrap around his chest, lifting him firmly yet gently back onto his feet.

"Astrid?" he whispered hoarsely, turning his head to see her silhouette against the distant bonfire.

"Come on," the young woman coaxed quietly, "let's get you home." With one arm around her neck, Hiccup felt Astrid lift almost all of the strain off the remnants of his left leg, and the pair set off slowly up the hill, but this time much less painfully than before.

Finally staggering through the doorway into the chief's house, Astrid kicked the door deftly closed behind them, still supporting Hiccup's body with her own.

The living room was almost pitch black, with only the tiniest slivers of light from the party outside shining through the cracks in the door and penetrating the darkness like lances of pure white.

"There's a candle hanging –" Hiccup croaked, but Astrid finished his sentence for him.

"– On the wall by the staircase – I know. Will you be alright for a second?"

"Yeah..." he grunted in reply, leaning back against the wall, and Astrid moved away, grabbing the wax and wick and shoving it into the dim coals of the central fire.

And only moments later, the entire space was illuminated by the flickering light of a newborn flame.

As Astrid returned quickly to his side, lifting him once again and supporting him over to the staircase, Hiccup noticed the intense expression on her face.

Her muscles were taut with the strain of holding him, her eyes lit up with fierce determination, her beautiful features thrown into sharp relief by the lighted candle held in her hand.

And although the presence of her replaced headband was indicative of a somewhat negative mood swing, there was something else present, something which ran far deeper than the simple kindness of helping another.

It was a feeling of compassion, of caring...and of loving.

Both of them panting with the effort of getting Hiccup to the top of the staircase, Astrid pushed the door to his room open.

"Astrid, please, I can walk –"

"No," she cut in firmly, but without looking at him, "it would only do more harm than good now." Shutting the door to his room behind them, the young woman practically carried him over to the bed, and lowered him gently down onto the soft blankets.

Breathing a deep sigh of relief, Hiccup began to massage the sore muscles above his left knee, just as the healer had instructed he should.

Astrid quietly shut the door to his room, placed the candle down on his workbench to one side, and sat down on the lone wooden chair, her hands clasped together and her face full of concern.

"How do you feel?" she asked softly, and Hiccup grimaced.

"Like someone's set my knee on fire..." he mumbled in reply.

"I really need to get this off –" He began slowly to bend down, wincing with pain, but Astrid beat him to it.

The young woman quickly knelt down on the floor in front of him, and began to roll his trousers up, not meeting his surprised gaze.

"Astrid –" he started, somewhat annoyed by her persistence, but she cut him off yet again.

"Let me help," she spoke soothingly, now moving her hands up to the clasp attaching his prosthesis to the remnants of his lower leg.

But all of a sudden, Hiccup stood up, hobbling to one side, his hands tightening into fists of anger; his temper was beginning to rise again, and he wasn't entirely sure why.

Astrid straightened up, staring at him with a mixture of surprise and resentfulness.

"Why are you doing this?" he demanded furiously, and the young woman flinched at the harsh tone in his voice.

"Is it wrong to try and help you? Hiccup, you're in pain –"

"And having you around is hardly soothing," he spat, turning away to face the wall; what was wrong with him?

A moment of silence past between the two of them.

Astrid didn't move.

"Sorry," he mumbled at length.

"That was callous and rude, and I shouldn't have said it...it's just..." Turning back to face her, Hiccup realised that he had no idea how to say what he was now feeling.

In truth, he didn't even know what he was feeling.

Astrid was staring at him sadly.

"Why are you doing this?" he repeated, only this time quite a bit softer.

"I told you," she replied quietly, "I want to help –"

"But why? _Why _is this so important to you all of a sudden?" Now, it seemed that they were finally starting to get closer to the truth.

Astrid cleared her throat.

"Hiccup...it's my fault you got injured in the first place! If I hadn't –"

"Oh not again! I'm going to have to stop you right there –"

"No! Hiccup, if I had never come searching for you and brought you back here, you would never have fought the Red Death, and you would never have crashed, and you never..." And as the woman before him dissolved into tears, her hands clasped tightly over her mouth, Hiccup sighed; he couldn't even find the energy to comfort her.

"Alright, you brought me back and I got injured; so what? Look at the positives –"

"Like _what_?" The boy mused a little space.

"Well," he said after a moment's thought, "things are starting to get back together in the village, Vikings and dragons are now friends...oh, and that means no more raids. _Plus_, with the assistance of the dragons, Berk's power and influence will extent greatly, and there certainly won't be any more food shortages. How am I doing so far?"

Astrid sniffed, but still managed a smile, which was now barely visible in the fading candlelight; the wick was almost entirely burned up.

"Thank you for summing that up," she spoke quietly with a little giggle.

Hiccup frowned.

"You know that's _my _line, right?"

"So what? Are you going to stop me from using it?"

"No, I just –"

"Good, because you couldn't anyway, so there." And the discussion came to a sudden stop, with the pair just staring at each other, both of them smiling a little.

Hiccup winced as his leg seemed to come back to life, but a moment later he wished it hadn't; Astrid was there in a flash and tugging him over towards the bed.

"Come on! That thing needs to be taken off so you can –"

"Wait," Hiccup commanded, and the young woman stopped her hassling and stared at him in surprise.

"What now?"

Hiccup could now feel something welling up inside him, some strange tide of emotions like a giant wave poised on the edge of the beach, ready to crash down and overwhelm him, to sweep him away into the sea of endless oblivion.

"You know," he said quietly, struggling to hold back the rush of sensation which even now threatened to engulf him, "there is one other thing you could do to help..."

"What is it?" Astrid asked soothingly, staring into his eyes with a smile.

And before Hiccup knew it, he had leaned forward and kissed her.

Having finally realised what he wanted, Hiccup let himself go, wrapping his arms around the blond Viking.

And Astrid returned his love with equal passion, pulling him in closer to her.

The couple stood entwined around each other for what seemed like an eternity, lips locked passionately together, opening their hearts entirely...

* * *

...and having unknowingly wanted..._needed _his love for so long, Astrid found herself trapped, stuck, unable to let him go.

It seemed that Hiccup felt exactly the same way.

After what could have been anywhere between a minute and an hour, they broke apart, still clutching each other tightly.

Resting her forehead against his, Astrid brushed her nose against his, savouring the moment.

In hindsight, she should have expected something like this to happen; a discontented, single Viking woman in the prime of her youth chasing after a boy almost exactly her age who had been exiled for simply being _different _should have clearly been indicative of something far more meaningful and profound than just a quest for reconciliation.

* * *

Determined not to let this elusive feeling, this long-sought emotion escape once more, Hiccup suddenly found himself driven to hold her even tighter, in spite of the battle which now began to rage within him.

"I'm...sorry it took me so long to work out what I wanted," he spoke quietly, and Astrid pressed her nose to his, caressing his cheeks with her lips.

"Better late than never..." she said with a slight giggle.

But as the conflicting feelings of love, betrayal and regret within him reached their apocalypse, Hiccup could no longer control himself fully, and the boy shook a little, biting his lip and lowering his head to stare at the ground.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Astrid asked instantly, her soft voice laced with a hint of worry; it was useless to try and hide such things from her, and the thought of trying to entirely conceal his inner trauma from the young woman was instantly dismissed as hopeless...so he settled for the next best thing.

"My leg is hurting again," he lied, praying to the gods that at least this once she would believe him.

And it seemed that she did.

Her arms still wrapped tightly around him, Astrid practically dragged Hiccup over towards his bed.

"Well then, let me help..." she spoke quietly, with a slight smile.

Sitting slowly down on the edge of the mattress, Hiccup simply watched as the young woman proceeded to undo the clasp on his prosthesis, pulling the hard metal ever so gently away from the stump of his left knee.

As Astrid placed the artificial limb to one side, the boy stared sadly down at the remnants of his leg.

But his mesmerised gaze was soon interrupted by a darting, blond figure which sat down cross-legged on the bed beside him, and pounced upon him.

Pulling him into a tremendous hug, Astrid grinned cheekily at him.

"Better?" she asked, and Hiccup smiled, his ribs beginning to ache a little at the crushing embrace.

"Better," he replied with a gasp, reaching up to try and extract himself from Astrid's spine-strangling grip, but to no avail; she wasn't letting go, not for anything in Midgard –

"Ai!" Astrid squealed, as Hiccup dug his fingers into her stomach, remembering precisely where she was ticklish.

This action succeeded in giving him back freedom of breath, as the blond Viking jumped back in fright, but also earned him a nasty knock on the shoulder.

"_That_," Astrid said in mock scathing tones and with a slight pouting expression, as the boy rubbed his aching arm, "is for tickling me –" But Hiccup knew what was coming, and pre-empted exactly what the young woman was about to do.

Leaning over, he pushed his lips to hers, and for a moment it seemed that Astrid was surprised at his interruption of her well-rehearsed technique.

But only a moment later she began to respond to his open heart with the fill force of her own, and held him closer and tighter than ever.

And thus, the final release of emotional burden gave way to a night of intense passion...

* * *

As Hiccup began to stir, his mind slowly re-awakening and recognising the waking world as its new master, the boy opened his eyes...to see nothing at all.

It must still have been very early in the morning, for not only were the bonfires of last night's party no longer shining from out in the meadow (and even if they were, the great pyres no longer illuminated his room), but the sun had not yet risen, or even begun to light the far northern seas and the lands around the Viking village of Berk at all.

He yawned loudly.

"Well, _now _that you're awake..." he heard another voice speak, and felt a soft pair of hands caress his body.

Suddenly smothered by the young woman, Hiccup could do very little to resist his own love and lust which now commanded every muscle in his body...

A few minutes later, and Hiccup found himself yawning with exhaustion once again; it was hardly a frequent occurrence that he awoke during the dead of night, even with his pained leg...or what was left of it.

And speaking of which, the boy suddenly noticed the strange feeling in his left knee...of absolutely nothing.

Certainly there were times where he stopped noticing the pain, but that was because he had grown accustomed to it being ever present...and was completely unprepared for the immense waves of bliss and awe which now crashed over him.

Astrid must have sensed that something had changed, for Hiccup felt her shift ever so subtly at his side, moving her head to rest next to his.

"What is it?" she asked quietly, caressing his face with her soft lips.

"My leg –" he began, but was immediately interrupted by a worried voice.

"Oh Hiccup, I'm sorry, I really shouldn't –" Hiccup felt her pull away, but immediately trapped her and pinned her down.

"– Is absolutely fine," he finished, voice brimming with elation.

"Well then," Astrid purred, wrapping her arms around his chest and pressing her nose softly against his, "we should...celebrate..."

* * *

Waking once again to the sound of pure silence, Hiccup sniffed and scratched his nose as a cool, gentle breeze flowed in through the window and over his face, the first rays of the morning sun reflecting off the rocky cliffs which stretched out over the meadow behind Berk.

It would have seemed like a beautiful dream, all far too good to be true, were it not for Astrid's lithe figure coiled possessively around him.

Shifting only a little so as not to disturb the sleeping woman, Hiccup rolled onto his side, looking with sleep-laden eyes into Astrid's beautiful face.

Perhaps it was a trick of the light, but it seemed as though the young woman's face was more peaceful than he had ever seen it before.

Years of harsh physical and mental conditioning had shaped her into a living weapon, giving her the capability to survive in the unforgiving northern seas, but also sacrificing her soul to the warlike ways of the Viking.

But now the blade was blunt, the axe broken, the weapon cast aside.

Perhaps, Hiccup mused poetically, he was, in a way, saving Astrid from herself...

Turning his head to the right, the boy noticed that Toothless still played a part in his life even now, if only through his notable absence from his usual spot in the corner of Hiccup's room.

The Night Fury was most likely kipping somewhere under a tree in the forests of Berk's immediate surroundings, presumably still entangled in the knot of young, female dragons to which he had tied himself the previous night.

Suddenly realising that he knew absolutely nothing about a dragon's love life, Hiccup wondered what his friend was feeling right now.

Probably nothing, as the Night Fury would most likely be asleep, but if he were awake...

Hiccup owed his best friend so much...his freedom, his sanity, his sense of self-worth and even his life, many times over.

Toothless alone had rescued the little boy from a life of persecution at the hands of an ignorant Viking horde.

And it was Hiccup who had permanently crippled the Night Fury, committing him to a life of human dependency.

It seemed, however, that the best way to repay this intelligent, selfless creature was simply to stay alive, and never to take away either his power of flight _or _the human companionship which the dragon now craved so much.

Suddenly disturbed from his revere, Hiccup turned back to look at the woman who rested beside him.

Astrid shifted a little in sleep, her hair parting to reveal what looked to be quite a nasty scar.

Running half-way around her forehead, this fading wound looked uncannily like a dragon's bite.

He had not noticed it before now, as the injury was normally obscured by Astrid's long fringe.

The next few minutes passed with Hiccup simply staring into her face, entranced by her beauty.

A sudden, irresistible urge seized the young man, and he reached out to touch her scar, an injury which, somehow seemed not to detract from but to add to her beauty.

But this, it seemed was a mistake, as Astrid's face suddenly tightened with pain.

Hiccup whisked his hand away immediately, but still too late.

Opening her eyes slowly, Astrid squinted at him, her hand moving straight to her forehead.

Rubbing her scar, she smiled gently at Hiccup.

"Good morning," she spoke quietly, her voice soft and lyrical.

"I think I might have...accidentally woken you up –" Hiccup mumbled with slight grimace, but Astrid kissed him, silencing him quite effectively.

"That's all right," she whispered, brushing her nose against his, and the young man felt a great swooping sensation in the pit of his stomach which had nothing to do with hunger.

The pair spent another half an hour simply lying there, enjoying each other's company, as it slowly grew lighter and lighter outside.

By and by, Astrid broke the silence.

"You know," she began quietly, "I was really quite furious after you walked out on the all the celebrations last night.

I actually followed you with the intention of giving you a piece of my mind." Hiccup's heart skipped a beat.

"Yeah...about that –"

"But now," Astrid cut in, placing a smooth hand gently over his lips, "that doesn't matter anymore; I've got you." Returning her smile a little guiltily, Hiccup sighed.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to work out what I wanted," he spoke, repeating his words of the previous night, determined to make Astrid see that he really was sincere, but was awarded exactly the same response.

"Better late than never," she replied with a grin, before resting her head on his chest, and closing her eyes peacefully.

Hiccup, however, could stand it no longer.

His stomach was calling louder than his heart, and the brown-haired boy began to haul himself out from underneath the mass of blankets.

But Astrid immediately grabbed his hand with her own, pulling him back down into her caressing embrace.

"And where do you think you're going?" she asked with a sly smile, and Hiccup was instantly disarmed.

"I'm hungry!" he moaned, struggling against Astrid's powerful grip, but to no avail.

"Me too..." she purred, "but not in that way..."

* * *

Having satiated Astrid's hunger, Hiccup finally managed, almost ten minutes later to sneak out from under the warm blankets and grab his prosthetic leg from the table without waking the young woman, who had thankfully gone back to sleep.

Silently and hastily dressing himself, the boy hobbled door without waking the sleeping tiger, and turned back to look at her for a moment.

Hiccup laughed to himself at his comparison of Astrid to one of the mythical 'great cats' which the southern traders would occasionally spin yarns about.

Still smiling, he simply stood there for a seconds, looking at her soft form snuggled tightly under the blankets of his bed.

But the moment of euphoria was soon eclipsed by a dark shadow of guilt and betrayal...

* * *

_I kind of want to apologise for this chapter, but then again... It was inevitable. Yes, they had lots of sex. This one chapter is the reason I raised the rating on this story, compared to the last two._

_To those who liked it, your thoughts, please! To those who didn't, sorry - I'll try and avoid such soppy romance in future.  
_

_Next chapter on Sunday week!  
_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	7. Chapter Seven

_Time for another chapter!  
_

_I'm feeling a little lazy today, so I don't think I'll bother to recount what happened in the last chapter...besides, it was fairly memorable stuff, I'm sure!  
_

* * *

_Chapter Seven: Breakfast Together_

Waking with a monumental yawn, Astrid shifted her hand slightly, wondering why she could no longer feel Hiccup's warm face against her palm.

Opening her eyes revealed just why; he was no longer in bed, or even in the room.

But just as the feelings of surprise and irritation began to arise once more, her sense of smell was suddenly stimulated by an incredible odour of pure bliss.

Something was cooking downstairs...something _very_ good.

"_Breakfast_?" And for a moment, it seemed like the very ground itself was shaking in anticipation of a potentially delicious meal...until Astrid realised that it was just own her stomach agreeing with her nose.

And without another word, she leapt out of bed, practically tripping over to get to her clothes, her bosom filling with excitement.

Hastily donning her undergarments, short skirt, long-sleeved gown, and one of Hiccup's warmer woollen vests, Astrid made her way quickly out of Hiccup's room and down the stairs into the main living space, following her nose.

That delicious smell of a warm breakfast seemed quite familiar, although she couldn't quite work out where she knew it from.

Reaching the bottom of the staircase, the young woman was met by a beautiful scene of homely perfection.

Seated in a chair by the fire was Hiccup.

He seemed to be doing something highly intricate with his hands involving a kind of long, wooden drum and fine threads of hair, but with the speed at which he worked, Astrid couldn't tell what it was.

Hanging above the hot coals was a large metal pot, filled almost to the brim with some delightful meal which the boy had prepared; the source of that wonderfully enticing aroma.

The light of an early morning right on the cusp of autumn seeped in through the chinks in the door and the small openings in the roof above.

The whole room was deliciously warm and cosy, the atmosphere peaceful and contented.

Upon noticing her arrival, Hiccup did a startled double take, immediately standing up and stowing his latest contraption away to one side.

"Ah! There you are!" he exclaimed with a joyous smile, quickly wiping his hands on a nearby rag before hobbling over towards where Astrid was standing, on the bottom step of the staircase.

The young woman's heart melted at the sight of his welcoming look of enthusiasm, and then twinged with a little sadness as his face twitched with the harsh, biting pain of his missing leg.

Gently returning his smile, Astrid gave a slight giggle, leaning against the banister.

Reaching the stairs, Hiccup gave her a quick kiss, before lifting her into his arms.

Astrid wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a slightly reproachful look as the boy carried her gently over towards his chair by the fire, still limping a little.

"Hiccup, I _can _walk you know..."

"I know," he replied sweetly, not taking his eyes off her face for even a moment.

"But...what about your leg?" Astrid asked, a little worried at the way his face seemed to flinch with every step on his prosthesis.

"What about it? It's _really _not as bad as you think," he said with a toothy grin, looking for a moment uncannily like Astrid remembered him from over seven years ago.

Sitting back down in his usual chair, he placed the young woman on his lap.

"See? Nothing to worry about."

Still holding her arms around his neck, Astrid rubbed her nose against his, returning his smile with her own.

"Mmmm...what smells so good?" she asked quietly, her stomach rumbling loudly again.

Hiccup laughed.

"I made breakfast! I hope you're hungry –" Astrid was a little surprised at his enthusiasm.

"Is that really such a good idea?" she asked uncertainly, but Hiccup just rolled his eyes.

"_'Course _it's a good idea! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!"

The young woman returned his sarcastic look with her own biting countenance "Oh you know what I mean!" She was feeling somewhat frightened at the idea of being..._found out_.

"Well," the boy mused, "what's wrong with going searching for a bit of company early in the morning, and ending up here just as I'm preparing a meal?" Astrid snorted derisively.

"In _this _little bit of nothing I'm almost not wearing? What would everyone think?!"

Hiccup sighed with exasperation, the smile vanishing from his face.

"Astrid, who _cares_ what other people think?" The Viking woman's face fell.

"And besides, we couldn't hide _this_ forever!"

"I know, I know..." she grumbled, a little irritably. "I just don't think people would look favourably on _us _if they found out that I spent the night here...with you." Her voice trailed off, and she stared blankly at the ground.

Hiccup tickled her chin, pulling a funny face.

"Look," he began consolingly, as Astrid giggled, trying to push his hand away, "I doubt anyone is going to be awake for a while yet anyway, so please...just stop _worrying _for once!" He stroked her hair gently, adjusting her headband soothingly, and Astrid felt her worry begin to seep away.

"Now, _are you hungry_?" he asked forcefully, pushing right up to her face.

"Quite!" Astrid nodded with a smile, looking back into his emerald green eyes.

"Good! Now if you'll kindly get off me, I'll serve you some porridge!"

Astrid immediately jumped up at the first mention of the delicious breakfast; so _that_ was the smell she had recognised!

Cooked oats!

Seating herself quickly upon another chair, the young woman felt her stomach rumble once again at the thought of the delicacy she was about to be served.

"You never said you had any left!" she said excitedly, as Hiccup began to ladle the delightful stuff into a large bowl, which he then handed to Astrid with a wooden spoon and a sweet, goofy grin to match.

"I never said I _didn't_, either!" he said, before turning away to serve himself some as well.

This was typical Hiccup cheek.

For a few minutes, the two of them sat together in silence, enjoying both their heartening bowls of porridge and the warmth of each other's company.

Presently, Astrid broke the silence, as something occurred to her.

"So how long have you been up for now?" she asked curiously, before taking another mouthful of oats.

"Oh...only about five minutes or so, just since you came down," Hiccup replied casually, with a completely straight face.

Astrid snorted into her porridge, and stared with wide eyes at Hiccup, while the latter calmly continued to munch on his own breakfast, albeit with a massive grin on his face.

_Hiccup_,making use of innuendo in his humour? This had to be a first!

"Hiccup –!"

"S-Sorry!" he choked, eyes now brimming with tears of mirth.

Leaning over to punch him on the shoulder as hard as she possibly could, Astrid almost spilled her entire bowl of porridge all down the boy's front, while Hiccup simply howled with laughter.

Rare was it indeed that he snickered even a _little_ at his own jokes, let alone lost his self-control over a bit of humour.

Finally regaining his composure, Hiccup wiped his eyes on his sleeve, still occasionally belching with amusement.

Astrid pursed her lips, trying desperately not to show how funny she had found his little quip.

"_Honestly _Hiccup! Could you not do better than that?"

"I probably could...but why would I when that one was so spontaneous?" the boy replied, finished his last mouthful of oats, still shaking a little with mirth.

"And besides, _you _found it funny too –"

"I did not!" Astrid was now fighting hard with herself not to start giggling.

"Oh admit it! You _so_ did!" Hiccup smiled cheekily at her, placing his empty bowl to one side, and the young woman felt her face twist into an unwilling grin.

"Well...maybe a little bit – but that doesn't make it any more appropriate –"

"It wasn't meant to be appropriate, Astrid," Hiccup spoke slowly, his smile widening even further. "It was intended to amuse. And it did. I would call that a success, wouldn't you?" The boy was now becoming more and more maddeningly irritating and lovably cheeky at the same time.

Astrid's bowl was now also empty.

Suddenly leaping up in her chair, the young woman dived upon him with the force of a charging Gronckle.

"Hey –!" was all Hiccup had time to get out, before he was crash-tackled by a frisky Astrid, a little frenzied by his unusual twist in humour.

Sprawling to the floor, his chair toppling over and crashing down precariously close to the open fire, the boy had only a second to count himself lucky that the thick fur carpet had been there, before Astrid landed on top of him, pinning him to the ground.

"So..." she purred, as Hiccup struggled hopelessly against her powerful grip, "what did you want to do now?" Rubbing her nose against his, she kissed him again and again, and the boy beneath her finally began to respond in kind.

After what could have been almost half an hour, the two were still there, lying together on the warm sheepskin rug.

Astrid found herself feeling unusually drowsy, possibly due to the combined warmth of the cosy fire and Hiccup's body resting against her own.

"You've made a shocking mess of my hair, you brute, you..." she chided playfully, but Hiccup merely responded with his usual, cheeky smile.

The young man was gently running his hands through her hair, of which there suddenly seemed to be quite a bit.

Her thick, golden locks covered the pair of them, getting in both of their eyes, and just being a bit of a nuisance in general.

Astrid very rarely removed her headband, not even for sleeping, and had been genuinely surprised at the masses of hair which fell down to over her shoulders after her beloved leather strap had fallen off for the first time in almost a year, with the exception of washing-days.

"_I don't know how you can put up with it..._" Hiccup had mentioned casually the previous night, as the two had lain in bed together.

"_It just seems to be...everywhere!_" And while the boy's hair had grown substantially during the seven years which he had spent away from Berk, at least _he _had bothered to get it cut more than twice in the same time period.

"Hey, Hiccup," Astrid suddenly spoke, putting on a quiet, seducing tone, "what was that thing you were working on when I first came downstairs?" Hiccup's face went from sleepy contentment to bright enthusiasm in the blink of an eye.

"I was wondering when you were going to ask about that – it's the same thing from the forge yesterday!" he exclaimed excitedly, jumping up with energy far surpassing Astrid's sluggish torpor.

"No, wait! I didn't mean for you to –" The young woman began to call out, but it was already too late, for Hiccup now hobbling over to his upturned chair, which he promptly flipped over, before kneeling down to collect up the various bit and bobs of his latest gadget.

Astrid bit her lip as a sudden spasm of pain passed across Hiccup's face.

Although the boy had promised her he would take it easy as far as any left knee movement went, Astrid still thought he expected too much of his prosthesis...kneeling should at least be out of the question for now.

"Here, come and have a look!" he prompted excitedly, and suddenly the young woman found that she had the strength to haul herself up and stagger over into the second chair, which Hiccup had just righted for her.

Collapsing into the wooden frame, Astrid began to wonder she was so tired.

But the answer came to her soon enough.

The love which she and Hiccup shared seemed to express itself in a somewhat furious fashion, with quite an amount of wrestling and play fighting...not to mention the events of the previous night.

And then, out of the blue, a frightening realisation hit her like a frozen fish straight to the face.

But just as she opened her mouth to say something, Hiccup turned back to her with a look of pure delight on his face, and Astrid found herself unable to spoil the moment; _it_ would have to wait.

Plonking himself down in his own chair, the young man began to fiddle around with his armful of gadgets, attaching a string here and a metal pin there, until finally he held in his hands what looked to be some kind of highly unusual and exotic wooden drum, bound lengthwise by several tight, hair bands.

"Know what this is?" he asked dramatically, staring at her with utmost enthusiasm, and Astrid was reminded fondly of the little child Hiccup playing with his numerous mechanical toys all those years ago...

"You're going to have to tell me, as I have no idea whatsoever," she stated bluntly.

Hiccup's face dropped comically, and he sighed with exasperation.

"Fine. I guess I'll have to _explain _it to you then." It took Astrid several seconds of insulted anger before she realised that he was being facetious yet again, and the pair of them burst out laughing.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, Hiccup suddenly stood up, placed his contraption down upon his seat, and walked over to the fire.

"Can I get you some tea –?"

"Hiccup, you are _too kind _for your own good; do you know that?" The young man gave a slight grimace, quickly removing the empty porridge pot from its position above the fire and replacing it with a second, smaller metal can which he then proceeded to fill with water and tea-leaves.

"Too kind? I'm not sure I even think that's possible..." he said thoughtfully. "But answer my question! _Would you like some tea _–?"

"Gladly!"

Working deftly with the pot and fire, Hiccup had the water boiling in no time.

"I hope this is good enough..." he spoke softly, handing her a hot mug of liquid which steamed with the most pungent of fragrances.

"It's fine, thanks!" Astrid accepted her tea, breathing in the exotic aromas of a very special kind of drink indeed.

"More out of your little _box of treats_?" she teased, sipping at the tea, while Hiccup seated himself once again, having already poured himself some of the scalding liquid.

"Indeed. Now..." He grabbed the stringed device, tweaking a few more knobs here and there and tapping the wooden shell.

The hollow thing made a dulled echo, and suddenly it occurred to Astrid what this thing was.

"Oh! A musical instrument!" Hiccup turned slowly and comically to stare at her with wide eyes and a slightly open mouth.

"You don't say!" Astrid rolled her eyes.

"Just show me how it works!"

"Very well," Hiccup sighed, chortling to himself, and he began to pluck the strings, one by one.

The sound produced was...strange, to say the least.

A beautiful, resonating hum –

"But that's not the best part!" Hiccup said with a grin, and picked up another gadget – a long piece of reinforced wood, bent at both ends with another piece of strung between the two, and a small, leather strapped handle.

"_This_ is the best part!"

And without another word, the boy began to play.

* * *

Astrid didn't know how long she sat there, utterly mesmerised by Hiccup's tune.

The sound his instrument made seemed to defy all words she invoked to describe it.

The melody was simple, and the rhythm which Hiccup made for it by tapping his feet was repetitive in the extreme, but still...it was one of the most beautiful sounds Astrid had ever –

A sudden knock at the door wrenched the young woman's mind down from the clouds, and she stumbled to her feet, dozy from the surfeit of porridge and tea.

A strong smell of beer caught her nose, and upon opening the door, Astrid was not surprised to see a tremendously tired Snotlout.

The ugly boy yawned and rubbed his eyes.

"Astrid? What're you doin' here?" Astrid smiled pleasantly and beckoned to him to come inside.

Nothing could upset her now – and Snotlout was even smiling _pleasantly_ at her for once, instead of leering at her with his usual, slaving grin.

"Oh...just having breakfast. Would you like something to –"

"Please – I'm starving..."

As Astrid pointed the brutish boy to one of the chairs by the fire, she glanced back at Hiccup.

The boy's eyes were now closed, and he was swaying to and fro with the sound of his own music.

He looked so happy and contented.

Astrid never wanted to see him any other way, ever again.

"How about some porridge?"

"Some wha'?"

"Porridge. It's a –" But she got no further than that, for Snotlout had passed out.

The boy's head lolled over the back of his chair, and he slept.

Astrid chuckled, and helped herself to the bowl she had just served up for him.

One by one, the rest of the gang began to trickle into the house, drawn to the warmth of the fire, the smell of the food and drink, and the sounds of music.

It must have been mid-morning by the time they were all there – and not once had Hiccup stopped played.

He had moved through several tunes, flowing from one to the next without any difficulty whatsoever.

Astrid simply sat there, staring into his peaceful face, her forgotten tea cooling slowly to one side.

Hiccup was so masterful...was there anything he couldn't do?

Getting up to help herself to the last of the porridge, the young woman gazed around at her childhood friends, all slumped at funny angles on chairs and pillows in a ring around the fire, some dozing, some chatting quietly.

It seemed as though their group was finally complete again.

As strange as it seemed, Hiccup's absence over the last seven years had created a hole in their social relationships which, strangely, nothing had been able to fill...

But that Hiccup-shaped gap was now gone, filled by the one and only person who could make them all whole again.

Suddenly, Astrid noticed that Ruffnut was staring at her.

The former returned the twin's gaze with an uncertain smile, which immediately faded as Ruffnut's brow furrowed.

She seemed almost...frustrated, angry, furious even...and perhaps a little jealous?

The music warbled softly through the warm air and echoed off the high wooden ceiling of the chief's house.

Ruffnut's gaze faltered, and she picked herself up and walked over to the door, gesturing softly for Astrid to follow her.

Confused hardly described how Astrid now felt – Ruffnut was not the kind to _ever _be secretive about _anything_.

If something had to be said, she would say it, regardless of who was present or what they might think.

Glancing around the room once more, the young woman noticed that everyone else was now asleep, save Hiccup.

The boy simply continued to play, relaxed and yet incredibly focussed, his music timed to perfection, not a single note or beat missed.

Hauling herself to her feet, Astrid was suddenly conscious of the fact that she was wearing once of Hiccup's vests as she walked over to the door and followed an irate Ruffnut outside.

This did not bode well.

* * *

_OK people, just a quick word of caution; we're about to catch up with where I'm currently up to with the writing, as I've been having a difficult time keeping the story going. I am going to finish this last part of the three part story, but I can't confirm that the update schedule will remain fortnightly...sorry._

_With a bit of luck and perserverence, two weeks people!  
_

_Lumpyness.  
_


	8. Chapter Eight

_Chaaaptaaar!  
_

_I'm really sorry about the long wait, people. I'm having a kind of rough time with life in general right now, but most of all, I've just been having trouble getting motivated to right. The first three quarters of this chapter came out in a single sitting weeks ago, and since then I've just been all bleagh about it. However, here it is!  
_

_So, a huge banquet has been held the previous night, an event to comemmorate the unification of Vikings and Dragons. Hiccup was reinstated as heir to the chieftain's throne, but the boy was still having reservations, until an unexpected turn of events saw him spending a night with Astrid. In the morning, Hiccup makes breakfast, finishes crafting his (well, I haven't really decided what it is, but I'm leaning towards a guitar-esque instrument), and Astrid and the rest of the gang pile in for porridge.  
_

_Ruffnut, however, is giving Astrid dirty looks, and the latter is not happy about this.  
_

* * *

_Chapter Eight: Suspicions_

"Just what do you think you're doing?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Don't play ignorant, Astrid, I know _exactly _what's going on –"

"Do you? Do you really? Well, seeing as I am so utterly clueless as to the events of my own life, why explain it to me?"

Ruffnut looked for all the world like she were about to hit Astrid, and the latter clenched her fists in anticipation.

The twin's eyes narrowed, but then she turned away with a sigh.

Astrid relaxed her guard, but her confusion was now greater than ever.

What exactly was –?

And there it was – plain and obvious.

How could she have not noticed this before?

All those charming smiles, the attempts to impress, even the simple act of seeking his attention...they all had one meaning.

Ruffnut also had feelings for Hiccup.

Astrid was stuck, completely frozen to the ground outside the chief's house.

What...what should she do?

What _could_ she do?

How does one react to this kind of revelation in a way that maintains harmony and does not cause a simple conversation to devolve into an anarchic verbal (and perhaps even physical) brawl?

Thankfully, it was Ruffnut who made the next move.

She turned back to Astrid, and the latter was shocked to see a look of sad hopelessness upon the twin's face.

"Let's go for a walk..." she said quietly, and Astrid nodded.

* * *

"...so that's it? You're just gonna – but what about your parents? What about the deal with Snotlout's family?" Astrid shook her head sadly.

"I don't know. But..." she paused to look up at a consoling Ruffnut. "Things will work themselves out – one way or another..."

The pair stopped, right outside the chief's house, right where their little stroll had begun.

Their walk had taken them in a loop all around the quiet village, and in that time an apologetic Astrid had explained everything to a solemn but understanding Ruffnut.

"They always do." So they seemed to. "We'll be fine." Ruffnut wasn't convinced.

"But the deal –"

"Look," sighed Astrid, "the whole idea with that deal was that it was supposed to bring my family more power, as Snotlout was going to be chief." She could hardly believed that that had happened only a few months ago.

"And now that Hiccup's retaken that right, I guess my parents won't have a reason to force me into it anymore." Ruffnut nodded slowly. "Hey," said Astrid with a slight chuckle, "you can keep Snotlout, if you like –"

"Not funny!" yelped the horrified twin, and she gave Astrid a hard knock on the shoulder. "Don't _ever_ mention that again!"

"Haha, alright, I won't!"

"Look," Ruffnut began, still a little concerned, "how are you going to break this to Snotlout?"

"It'll be fine," Astrid stated simply. "Fine."

She was finally starting to feel happier again, when a pair of dark shapes caught the corner of her eye, both moving slowly towards the Vikings.

Two dragons, to be precise, and both quite familiar; Toothless and Spineless.

The young woman chuckled to herself at the de-boned names of these two lithe reptiles.

"Um, Astrid, I'll see you later..."

"What? Where are you going –?"

Astrid turned to see Ruffnut already racing off towards the centre of the village, almost as though she were frightened of something...

Upon turning back to look at the dragons, the blonde discovered exactly why.

Toothless, who, moments ago, had been padding along with less vigour than a Hairy Hooligan with hay fever, was now bearing down upon Astrid with terrific speed.

"Toothless, what –"

The black dragon, however, did not stop, or even slow down, and only seconds later, he collided with the Viking woman, knocking her to the ground and placing a heavy claw upon her chest.

His face was only a foot from hers.

However, it was not the aggressive charge or violent crash into the cold, dewy grass that gave Astrid cause for concern, but rather the deep, almost inaudible, rumbling growl coming from the Night Fury.

"_You smell like him._" For a moment, confusion dominated the Viking's mind.

Smell like him –?

Then it clicked.

Of _course_ she smelled like him.

"_Why?_"

Astrid stared up into Toothless' great, green eyes – there was anger there.

So much anger...but behind the rage was nothing but –

Her back aching and her vision swimming, the young woman tried to concentrate.

"_Why?_" Toothless' voice tore exploded into her mind and tore through her very thoughts.

"I don't...Toothless, I don't know what you –"

"_Don't lie!_" The Night Fury's claw pressed her harder into the ground, and a slight pain began to grown in Astrid's ribs. "_What did you do?_"

"Argh, Toothless, get – get off, please –"

A sudden flash of blue blurred Astrid's vision, and a moment later the pressure was gone, the sky above her visible again.

Coughing with the receding pain, the blond Viking rolled to one side and blinked several times.

There, on the wet, morning grass by the chieftain's house, stood the two dragons, facing each other with lowered heads and outspread wings.

This was obviously the dragon equivalent of a challenge.

Spineless stomped several times with great, leathery claws, while Toothless growled and raked the grass with his own savage talons, leaving dark furrows in the clean meadow.

The Deadly Nadder stood directly between the Night Fury and Astrid.

Spineless was _defending_ her.

Wiping the last of the tears from her eyes, Astrid staggered to her feet, throwing up her arms in desperation.

"No no no, don't fight, please don't fight –"

Suddenly, without any warning at all, Toothless rapidly furled his wings, turned tail, and galloped away up the slope behind the village.

Moments later, he had vanished into the tree line, leaving a confused Astrid standing wet and shivering in the morning mist.

Though she was not alone.

Spineless quickly turned around and plodded over to kneel down beside Astrid, and circled her tail around to support the young woman.

Now seated comfortably upon the blue dragon's back, she blinked several times, trying to take in the sudden salvo of events by which she had just been struck.

Toothless' charge, his enraged growl, the accusing question, and the imposing standoff between the two giant reptiles.

Astrid pictured the enormous pairs of unfurled wings, the imposing stance adopted in challenge, the aggressive stomping and claw-raking, and the rumbling growls, and shuddered.

Viking challenges were nowhere near as frightening...

"_Astrid, are you alright?_" Even though she had been expecting the communication at any moment, the quiet voice still surprised the young woman, and she jumped.

"_I'm _–" Astrid stopped.

She wanted to say 'fine', but that just wouldn't be true.

The Night Fury's question was finally starting to sink into her conscience.

Why did she smell like Hiccup?

Simple, she and Hiccup had –

"_I'm a bit queasy, but I'll be alright._" Astrid shivered again, and turned to look directly at her Nadder, who had now lay down to be on the same level as her rider. "_That was...a little scary._"

"_Well, Toothless was hurting you._" The blond Viking felt a great rush of love for her dragon friend.

"_I was hardly going to sit back and watch him rip you to pieces. But as far as confrontations between dragons go, that was rather tame." _Astrid chuckled, but a moment later, her amusement was cut off by the one question she had hoped not to be asked.

Of course, it was inevitable.

"_Why did Toothless attack you?_"

Astrid was about to answer – though she wasn't sure what was to be said – but Spineless suddenly moved her snout right up to Astrid's body, and sniffed several times, quite audibly.

Astrid blinked.

Concealing the truth from a Night Fury with whom she had only a weak bond was one thing, but doing the same with her own, caring and loving dragon companion was something else entirely – and, if it came down to it, the young woman did not believe she had the strength lie to someone so close to heart.

"_You smell _very _strongly of..._" Spineless took another deep breath through her nostrils. "_Hiccup,_" the blue dragon concluded after a moments contemplation. "_What have you been doing...?_" Astrid sighed.

"I think you can probably guess," she spoke quietly, and the Nadder cocked her head to one side.

"_Tell me._" This, the Viking woman had not expected.

"_Well,_" she began uncertainly, "_I...we...I spent the night with him last night, and...well, things happened._"

"_Did you mate?_" Spineless asked brusquely.

Astrid nodded silently, her head lowered.

She wasn't even sure why she was so worried.

"_Hm. I now understand Toothless' anger._"

"What?" Astrid blurted out, somewhat affronted. She had at least expected her Nadder to take her side to the entirety in the conflict. "How can you say that, given what he –"

"_I said that I understood his anger, not that I thought it _at all_ justified._"

Silence reigned for a good minute, during which time Astrid's swirling thoughts began to gather themselves into organised bunches and order themselves in such a fashion as to be comprehensive to the last.

Her violent encounter with the dragon she had considered a great friend had blasted her with bewilderment, but it had also caused her to rethink what was happening around and within her, and had opened her mind to the potential consequences of her actions.

"_What are you going to do about it?_" The bluntness of the question raised Astrid's confusion even higher.

Why did everything seem to hinge upon her course of action regarding herself and Hiccup?

"_I don't know yet,_" she replied strongly, adding "_but I do know that my parents aren't immune to highly emotional forms of persuasion."_

Spineless let out a throaty chuckle.

Naturally, the young woman had explained her marital issue to her dragon companion, and the Nadder had sounded about as pleased as her rider about the whole situation.

"_Well, I'd like to give you advice, but...we dragons hardly have an equivalent situation, so I can't exactly speak from experience, or even tell you tales of similar occurrences. Besides, I'm sure you know what's best for everyone in the long run. Don't sell yourself short, Astrid, you're definitely one of the more intelligent Vikings –_"

Astrid, however, had stopped listening at the mention of dragons' love lives, a topic which she knew nothing about, yet had a bizarre interest in.

"_Spineless,_" she said suddenly, cutting in over the dragon's flood of compliments, "_how do dragons treat emotional relationships? I mean, surely you fall in love from time to time, right?_"

"_Well, this may sound somewhat odd –_" Spineless paused for a second's thought, before continuing. "_– But a dragon's feelings tend to be far more fleeting, the deeper and more powerful they are._ _Friendship between dragons – and, indeed, between dragons and humans – is a bond that is very rarely broken._ _Love, however, is most often experienced by dragons in a highly transitive fashion – such feelings rarely last longer than a day among our kind, which is usually just long enough to flirt - to 'break the ice' - and mate._ _There are exceptions from time to time, of course, but these are few and far between._"

Astrid could only sit and think.

It seemed that, from this perspective, Vikings had something which most dragons could never truly experience.

* * *

Half an hour later, Astrid was still sitting outside the chieftain's house, albeit now upon the small, stone bench which had rested there so long, that many believed it had witnessed the arrival of the first Vikings around three hundred years ago.

Spineless had left to track down and soothe an angry Night Fury, and had taken with her the rest of the dragons from Astrid's group.

The young woman grimaced at the thought of the Toothless being squashed flat once again by at least three times his own weight in dragons.

The black dragon had to be pacified, though.

The sudden crunch of wood against stone brought the Viking's attention around to the door to Stoick's house.

A heavy-eyed Snotlout was attempting to make his way out of the house, but the door had become stuck on the stony path below its outward swing due to the large Vikings downward force upon it.

Astrid pushed herself to her feet, ready to assist the brutish boy, but was unable to help before the door swung wide and Snotlout staggered outside.

"Hey Astrid, what's going on?" His voice was remarkably clear for a dithering drunkard, thought Astrid with a moment's malice – then she remembered that she was trying to be nice to Snotlout, just as he was with her.

Anyway...a new reason to keep on the Jorgenson boy's good side had just emerged, one which far outstripped any form of petty Viking feud resolution in importance.

"Hey," replied the young woman quietly, shifting an errant strand of hair from her immediate sight, "nothing much – I just needed some fresh air." Snotlout gave her a curious look.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Astrid held his gaze with her own, adopting what she hoped was an innocent oblivious look.

Snotlout, however, appeared unfased.

"Then why are you so dirty? Those clothes weren't that muddy when you left the house..."

"Yes, because you were awake to see me walk out." Astrid couldn't help but keep the sarcasm out of the conversation.

If there was one thing she was learning from Hiccup, it was that the right attitude in the right situation could go a long way to keeping things straight and peaceful.

Although why she using such scathing retort, the Viking woman did not know.

"Hm," the brutish boy grunted, before turning to look down towards the village.

He appeared to be deep in thought, a state rarely observed in this beefy Viking.

Not really caring, Astrid asked "What's on your mind?" She simply wanted to keep things cordial between them.

The answer, however, was quite unexpected.

"Everything. The village, the dragons...you and Hiccup." He finished with a sly grin, laced with the faintest tinge of regret.

"Me and Hiccup..." the young woman murmured, staring at the ground in front of her.

"Yeah – it's actually kinda funny, Astrid, you should try and conceal it more. You and him both." Somewhat surprised, Astrid looked back up to hold the Viking boy's gaze.

"R-Really? It's...that obvious?" Snotlout nodded.

"And that's alright, you know. I've been thinking this over, and I think I've got it figured out. Do you want to know what I think, Astrid?" The tone of regret had vanished from his voice, leaving nothing but his amused guffaw.

Astrid nodded, returned his smile a little uncertainly.

"Basically, this is it. I don't really have any serious feelings for you. I mean, you're good looking, and a great fighter, and really, really smart, but...I still don't click with you. And I know you don't really think too much of me, which is fair enough, I guess." The brutish boy shrugged his shoulders casually.

"You and Hiccup, now, you're great. You obviously like each other a lot, and you're similar in a whole lot of ways, probably even more than you can see. You'd do far better than we would as a couple, this is so scarily obvious now. Imagine us, married, and leading the tribe! We'd hardly set a good standard for the other Vikings to follow, would we?" Astrid shook her head as though in a trance. Here was _yet another_ side of Snotlout that she had never seen before.

"Now, Hiccup's just been reinstated as the chief's son, meaning he'll become chief after Stoick. Apparently they said as much in the big announcement last night, but I honestly wouldn't remember – I was...heavily into the beer by then. I remember that the point of getting us married was give your family better standing in the village, and to give me someone to help me rule, or so my parents told me. But...both of those ideas are now stupid, so what would be the point in continuing with this betrothal crap?"

"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Astrid asked slowly, as the light of hope crept slowly over her darkened heart.

"Duh," replied Snotlout with a cheeky grin. "We just need to go to our respective parents and argue with them until they say we can marry whoever we want! Just use logic, right?"

"Since when do you use words like that?" asked Astrid in disbelief.

"Since I started hanging out with Hiccup more often," replied Snotlout in tones of mock offense.

"You should try it sometime – oh wait, you did! Last night – ouch!" Astrid gave him a hard knock to the shoulder.

"You know, you're a lot more observant than you look," the blond Viking spoke slowly, with what she hoped was a menacing glare. "Keep that to yourself, eh?"

"But of course!"

* * *

_Guys, I can't give a timeline for the next update, sorry, as not a single word has been written for the next chapter. I know exactly what's going to happen, just not the details. It could be anywhere in the area from a week to a month, perhaps longer._

_Lumpyness.  
_


	9. Chapter Nine

_Guess what, guys?  
It's a new chapter!_

_Yeah yeah, I know, it's been a while. But I made a promise to finish off this story, and I intend to keep it!_

_I'm not going to do a refresher this time, sorry. Just re-read the previous chapter if you're in need of a reminder of what has recently transpired.  
_

* * *

_Chapter Nine: Close at Heart_

"Well, good luck!" Snotlout spoke quietly, before pacing off through the village, a fierce determination etched into his face like the emotions of a statue – timeless and unbreakable. Astrid sighed.

"Yeah, you too," the Viking woman replied with a sad smile. She simply didn't share his confidence. Snotlout's parents were light-hearted, easygoing, and astoundingly fond of their only child, whereas Astrid's mother and father...

Well, they certainly hadn't learned from their mistakes with Johan.

However, instead of heading straight home, Astrid wandered back up the hill, past the chief's house, and off towards the tree line, and the slopes of the mountain. It felt as though there were an invisible force steering her away from civilisation – perhaps her mind needed the quiet seclusion of the forest...

Trudging through the dense undergrowth of the eastern side of the mountain, Astrid sniffed the air. The sunlight streamed down through the pocketed openings in the canopy above to illuminate the misty brush that covered the forest floor almost entirely. Here and there were sizeable patches of open, burned ground, almost identical to the ones that Astrid had seen in Toothless' old prison by Raven's Point. In addition to the scorching, there were numerous cracked and blasted trees, evidence of serious dragon frolicking. And that smell...

The dragons had certainly made their mark on Berk and the lands around it. Astrid chuckled.

The sudden sound of breaking branches behind her made the young woman jump – the Viking instinct kicked in, and she reached to her belt for her axe, only to reason that she was without weapon. But this made her think. Why would anyone _ever _leave the village without with them some form of defence? Dragons could strike at any moment –

Astrid burst out laughing, relaxed, and turned around grinning. There, latched onto the trunk of a small pine, was a Terrible Terror. The green dragon scuttled out along one of the branches that ran towards Astrid, licking its eyes with its long tongue, and sneezed once. However, the tiny dragon had turned its head at the last moment such that the potent puff of fire went nowhere near Astrid. The young woman yawned, still smiling, and sat down upon a log that lay just behind her.

"Come here, you," she spoke in mock commanding tones, and the winged reptile scurried down the length of the branch, took flight once his weight exceeded that which it could support, and alighted upon Astrid's head. The Viking's face split into a wide grin as she held her head steady, supporting the gangly green animal.

"Now...you're Burp, aren't you? Gobber's little dragon –" Astrid could have hit herself, for once again, she had forgotten not to refer to dragons as the property of their human companions. The Terror hopped down onto Astrid's lap and gave the young woman a reproachful stare.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Look, I'm doing my best, but I...for some reason, Hiccup's tendency to refer to Toothless as _his _dragon has caught on."

"_But Toothless is a special case – he's always had to feel wanted."_ It seemed that forming a mental link with the reptiles was becoming easier with each dragon that she came across, though this was now the smaller of the two points that pinged her interest.

"_I don't understand Toothless; he really seems to shun the company of other dragons. Why?_" Burp huffed and shook his head.

"_I really don't think it's my place to be telling you what he's been through, but suffice to say that, if he feels that he trusts you enough, then he'll sit you down and tell you about his past some time._" Astrid's mind wandered back to a time almost a week ago when Toothless had forced her to make three promises. Runa she had already visited several times, her parents were about to be manipulated into changing their minds, but her conversation with Toothless had not yet come to pass...and now it seemed highly unlikely that it would in the foreseeable future.

"_That, or Hiccup might explain it to you – is something wrong?_" Even this little Terror, who Astrid barely knew, was able to sense when her feelings were sinking.

"_Yeah, I think I'm going to have to go with the latter option. Toothless isn't very happy with me right now._"

"_Oh? Why is that?_" Astrid chuckled. It couldn't hurt to tell the little fellow, could it? The mere fact that she could think of him in such a fond way was indicative of a level of bonding and trust that seemed to say that it was so – but Burp got there first, his guess right on the mark.

"_Did something happen with Hiccup? Did you two –_" But Astrid clamped a tight hand over the Terror's mouth.

"_Yes, we did,_" she spoke irately, before releasing freeing the dragon's jaws. "_But how did you figure it out so easily?_" Burp simply laughed, his dragonesque chuckle rough and rapid.

"_Well, miss Astrid, it might not delight you to hear this, but it is transparent to almost the entire dragon population that you and Hiccup share something substantially more important than friendship._" Astrid was _not _pleased.

"_You lot _are _observant then, aren't you? But what do you mean almost?_" She had a sneaking suspicion that she already knew the answer, a suspicion that Burp took only a second to confirm for her.

"_Toothless is...well, I don't think I can find a better word than 'oblivious'. The poor beast struggles greatly with seeing many things that the rest of us find somewhat obvious, though he does think deeper than the rest of us. That's probably why he was the only one to challenge that Tyrant –_" Suddenly, Burp took flight, his tiny wings flapping so fast that in only a second he had alighted back on Astrid's head.

"_I've said enough,_" he thought cheekily, "_and you have places to be going, no? Could I come along for the ride?_" Astrid laughed.

"Of course you can, little one, of course you can!"

Sometime later, Astrid found herself back at the door to her house. The wispy, black smoke rising from the hole in the roof told her that at least one of her parents was home...most likely only her mother, as Gunner had been spotted emptying the barrels last night. The man was a terrific drunkard, but at least he had the decency to stay out of the house unless were totally sober.

Just as she reached out to touch the door, Astrid noticed something odd. There were _two_ distinct voices warbling through the cracks in the wood. The first was easily recognisable as Hilda's, but the second...why was _he _here?

Pushing the door wide open, Astrid took a step inside, but was immediately brought to a halt by a blast of laughter from within. There, at one end of the table, stood her moth, a cup of steaming hot tea grasped between her hands. Across from her sat a very unexpected guest, his good leg propped up on a second chair and his prosthetic leaning against the wall to one side.

Upon hearing the grind of wood against stone, Hiccup swung around, the boyish grin plastered over his freckled face giving Astrid a cheerful boost.

"Well, hey there, look who it is! The very lady in question. Take a seat!" Her mind swirling with confusion, the young woman flicked her gaze to her mother, but was met by the same, bewildering joviality.

"It's quite alright, dear. Hiccup and I have just been discussing...well, _future developments_, I guess you could say. Sit down, and I'll get you some tea – Hiccup's own brew!" Astrid's senses were immediately flooded by the memories of that enchanting drink, and she quickly took a seat beside Hiccup. The young man placed a gentle hand over hers, and Astrid could almost feel him willing her to be calm. She returned his smile with uncertainty.

As Hilda returned and placed a cup of sweet-smelling tea in front of her daughter, Astrid sat patiently, her eyes flicking between Hiccup and her mother. Taking a seat across the table from the two younger Vikings, Hilda smiled warmly, and sipped her tea.

"So," she began after a moment's pause, "I hear you and Hiccup had quite a night last night." Astrid raised her eyebrows at her mother's cheeky grin, and turned to stare at Hiccup. The Viking boy stared right back at her, mirroring Hilda's grin.

"It's alright," the elder Viking said with a slight chuckle, "Hiccup's explained everything to me. You really needn't worry at all."

"But...mother, what about the deal with Snotlout's family?" Astrid asked quietly, her confusion ever present.

"Well," Hilda spoke slowly, obviously thinking hard, "in the light of recent events, there simply isn't any reason for you to marry him anymore. That, and..." She took a deep breath, and all of a sudden, Astrid saw a spark of empathy in her mother's eyes that had not been present for many years.

"Hiccup has helped me to see things differently. I...I'm sorry I tried to force you into something which would have done you so much harm. I guess, deep down, I hated what I was doing, but your father's ambitions and the thought of the personal benefits we would gain were...overpowering. I was hardly acting like a good parent should. I failed to give you what a young woman of your age needs – independence. And for that, my daughter, I am truly sorry."

Hilda's face appeared more lined than ever, her wrinkled smile tainted by sorry and regret. Astrid's hear was chilled by the sight of the young woman's her own mother in such a mournful state, and without another thought, she got out of her chair, walked around the table, and fell into her mother's arms.

As the feelings of love for her mother finally flowed free again, Astrid closed her eyes and held Hilda closer.

Suddenly, Hiccup sneezed, and the sound of his exploding nose made both mother and daughter jump violently. As the two blond women glared at him, Hiccup wiped his nose and smiled apologetically. Their moment of drama over, Astrid now sat on Hilda's lap, helping herself to her mother's tea. The latter hugged her daughter tightly and gave Hiccup a grateful smile, which the young man acknowledged with a simple nod; it was hard to believe that, only half an hour ago, Hilda had been sobbing her heart out over past mistakes, pledging to a consoling Hiccup that she would put things right.

The brown-haired boy smiled inwardly, satisfied at a job well done. It seemed that even stubborn Vikings weren't immune to the combined power of reason and emotion.

For the next few minutes, everyone was content to simply sit, with the warm, midday light streaming through the single window, and the heat of the open fire radiating through the cosy room.

Hiccup observed the pair, Astrid and her mother. Although Hilda had a good five and twenty years on her daughter, the similarities were uncanny; it was easy to see which side of the family Astrid's beauty came from.

The issue, however, was not quite resolved. Astrid's mother had been fairly easily convinced, but if there were one thing which Gunner held as a strong belief, it was faith in tradition and the upholding of promises.

"Hiccup," Astrid spoke suddenly, snapping the young man out of his reverie, "thank you, but..." Hiccup could almost see the question on the tip of her tongue, and he knew exactly what it was.

"Don't worry," he said with what he hoped was a reassuring smile, "we'll take things slowly. If there's one thing that I've learned from my time away, it's that these matters turn out best when they are left to progress naturally." Astrid nodded, returning his simple smile, but underneath her gaze lay a hint of suspicion.

One day, Hiccup thought to himself, she would know the truth. One day, he would tell her. But for now...for now, some things were best left unsaid.

Half an hour on, and the three Vikings were chatting away gaily over bowls of leftover lamb stew. The outside noise level was starting to increase, as humans and dragons everywhere began to awake, slow and sluggish after the previous night's shenanigans. Astrid chuckled inwardly as she remembered the hilarious sight of a drunk dragon trying to balance its way along a bench, with equally besotted Vikings egging her on.

"What about my father?" Hiccup cut in suddenly, making both women jump; the girly gossip that had surreptitiously stolen the stage was evidently enthralling.

"What about him?" replied Astrid, nonplussed.

"Well," said Hiccup thoughtfully, "with the future of the village at stake, I can imagine that he would have had a hand in such matters –"

"And so he did," chimed in Hilda, "but that was as far as his interest went, being solely focussed upon the welfare of this tribe. Besides..."

Astrid's mind, however, had drifted away into fantasy while she had been staring at Hiccup.

"...Which brings me back to my original point," Hilda concluded brightly. "Stoick just wants what's best for the village, and for you, Hiccup. I think if you spoke to him, you'd have no trouble getting him to see reason. Odin knows he's been _so_ much easier to deal with now that you've returned..." For just a second, Hiccup glanced at Astrid, but that was all it took. Their eyes locked, the smile infected him, and in only a moment, the two were gazing at each other as though they had never seen each other before. Astrid felt herself going red.

Hilda ceased her talking, her mouth slightly ajar and her eyes flicking between her daughter and the chieftain's son. A moment later, she relaxed, grinned, and coughed audibly, causing both of the younger Vikings to jump.

"Look, I don't _really _mean to interrupt," she spoke slyly, voice oozing with sarcasm, "but shouldn't we get this all sorted out before you two get all soppy again?" With every last mite of willpower, Astrid tore her gaze away from Hiccup's smiling face, and looked at her mother inquiringly.

"I had one more question – how will Snotlout react to all this?" Surely he won't be very pleased with –"

"Mother, he already knows. I spoke to him earlier today, and...well, he actually seems to understand why it wouldn't work for us to be paired together. He also seemed not to care that much, so I doubt he'll be causing any concerns. He even said that he was going back to see his parents and try to convince them to break off the deal. And from the way he was speaking to me, I doubt he'll have much trouble pulling their opinions around. He's...he actually sounds quite...well, it's not the Snotlout I'm used to..."

"I know what you mean," Hiccup cut in quietly, "he's undergone tremendous social stress lately, having had his only outlet for traditional Viking violence dramatically dammed. However, I've been having fairly regular conversations with the boy since I got back, and it seems as though he's getting through it all alright. By the way, is there a reason you have a Terror on your head? Or is it just the new fashion?"

Astrid snorted – she had completely forgotten about the little green dragon nestled in her hair. "I went for a walk in the woods earlier, just to clear my mind, and this little tyke found me. He seems to have a –"

"– Bit of a thing for your hair, yes, it's rather obvious. Also, he's not the only one, not when you let your hair down like that. It's beautiful! Why don't you wear it like that all the time?" The Terrible Terror shifted slightly on her head, and Astrid felt a surge of cheeky aggression pass through her.

"So you don't think it looks good otherwise?"

"What? No, I just said –"

"Gods, Hiccup, you think my hair's that hideous?"

"I never said that! I would never...!" But, as Astrid and her mother began to chuckle, Hiccup voice dropped off, and his eyes narrowed.

"Oh I see – you're making fun of me. Very good, very clever, you got me. That's me outsmarted then, innit?" The young man pouted in mock belligerence and crossed his arms in front of his chest. Astrid immediately felt guilty, and hopped up from her mother's lap to stride around the table and bend down to kiss Hiccup.

And that was it. They were lost in the moment, absorbed into the lust for one another, taken by the urge to –

"Yes, look, why don't you two leave that for when you're alone?" Hilda's voice came as if out of nowhere to Astrid's ears, and she suddenly she found herself looking back at her mother in surprise. Hiccup placed a guilty hand on her cheek, and Astrid bit her lip.

"She's got a point, you know. Why don't we –"

The sudden grinding of wood against stone caused Astrid to jump back in anticipation. All three Vikings looked round to see none other than Astrid's father standing in the doorway, his eyes heavy and his gaze bloodshot. Gunnar looked surprised for a moment to see Astrid on her knees beside Hiccup's chair, but his eyes soon flicked to his wife, and a smile crept across his face. The man _was_ known as one of the kinder Vikings of Berk.

"Well," he croaked, "we certainly won't be doing those too often." As he walked inside, Gunner shot Hiccup a suspicious look. "Why are you here?" he asked, not impolitely. Hiccup shrugged, taking a sip of his cold tea.

"Just though I'd drop by and say good morning. I didn't spend much time at the banquet last night, as my leg was paining me." A good reason, thought Astrid, and not entirely untruthful.

"Actually," cut in Hilda suddenly, drawing everyone's attention, "there's something I'd like to discuss with my husband – alone. You two head on outside, enjoy the weather." Astrid didn't need any more convincing than that.

"Come on, lazy," she spoke brusquely, patting Hiccup on the shoulder, "let's go see where the others are." Within a second, Hiccup was on his foot and hobbling after her, a loud clunk audible with his every second step.

As the door swung shut behind the two of them, Astrid heard the sound of her mother's voice start up again, its tone unmistakable.

"We should go," she spoke quietly, and Hiccup nodded. "D'you actually want to find the others?" The boy shook his head.

"No, actually, I'd like to find Toothless."

"Oh?"

"There's something I haven't done in a while...I need to _fly_."

* * *

_Alright! It's nice to have finally gotten back into this.  
_

_I can't really talk in absolutes here, but the next chapter shouldn't be too far away. Maybe a month. Maybe a little less or more. We'll see._

_As ever, I do appreciate thoughtful comments and constructive criticism._

_Cheers,  
Lumpyness._


	10. Chapter Ten

_Boom! Another chapter!_

_This one really came out easily - I've written almost the entire thing between now and the last chapter I uploaded._

_Enjoy!_

* * *

_Chapter Ten: Hope_

Hiccup trudged along through the thick forest brush, his right arm slowly growing sorer and sorer with the gargantuan basket of Summer berries that he and Astrid had been out picking. The blond Viking walked lightly beside him, a smile of perfect contentment etched so deep into her beautiful face that Hiccup wished it would never again change. Berries had been merely an excuse, the latest in a string of good reasons for the two of them to be spending time alone...together.

Gunnar had been strangely easy to convince, though this was thanks largely to his lethargic state due to a night of heavy drinking. As Hilda had later said to the two of them, "He just needed some tender, loving care, and a little coaxing – that, and...well..." She had brushed her hair seductively to one side. "I _am _his wife." Hiccup and Astrid had only laughed.

Stoick had been the next target for the now five of them to convince to throw out the betrothal. Hiccup and Astrid had first pleaded their case of love to the gruff yet subtly grinning chieftain. When the Vast man had requested that Astrid's parents show their support for this course of action, Gunnar and Hilda had done just that. But, ultimately, it had been Snotlout who had barged in with a letter signed by his parents and the speech to match any that the chieftain had ever delivered.

"_See, if I'm not going to be chieftain, then your reason for getting Astrid to marry me is gone – the whole point of it all was that Astrid would make a great chieftainess –_" Astrid had looked very pleased, but Hiccup had merely muttered "_That's not a word..._"

"_– A fact which has remained unchanged. So now that Hiccup's going to be chief next, a choice, which, Stoick, I do believe to be one of your greatest decisions ever, it makes sense for him and Astrid to be wed, right?_" Snotlout had hit just the right part of Stoick's ego, and the chieftain swelled with pride.

"_Very well,_" he had announced at length to the jubilant cries of everyone present, "_but we'll be keeping this a secret for just a little while longer – a period of time whose length will remain at my discretion! There are some in the village who would not approve of this decision. That Mildew chap's always on the lookout to question my commands..._"

And that had been that.

However, as soon as that issue had been dealt with, Hiccup's mind had turned to worry about another.

Toothless had not been seen since the banquet, and no-one seemed to know where he was.

"Phwah!" exclaimed Astrid suddenly, and Hiccup jumped, almost spilling the entire load of berries, his quiet reverie disrupted.

"Why is it so warm?"

"No idea. Perhaps Odin is pleased that you've made peace with the dragons –"

"For the last time, Hiccup – WE! The peace WE made with the dragons! None of us could have done it without your help!"

"Oh, I don't know..." the young man spoke with a sly smile, and Astrid rounded on him, a perplexed look splattered over her face.

Almost a week had passed since the night of the Peace Banquet, and Hiccup was still trying get used to Astrid's overly apologetic and idolising nature, despite the young man's best attempts to keep such infuriating behaviour in check.

"Hiccup, don't start with that again. Until I met that Nadder on the mountain, I was just as intolerant and brash as any of the other Vikings! And don't you say otherwise –" Astrid stopped dead at the look on Hiccup's face, and her expression began to change.

"Were you?" Hiccup spoke quietly, placing his basket of berries down on the ground. The wind sighed in the eaves and the glowing Sun cast ethereal rays through the forest canopy, illuminating the moist, warm air beneath the pines. The smell of dragons was as thick as the mist.

"Were you really? Remember back to before I was exiled. That day I tried to show everyone a dragon's peaceful nature? Do you remember what happened?" Astrid was staring regretfully at him, her smooth face twisted in anger and a little disgust.

"Hiccup, I don't want you to remind me of that _ever _again. What I did was shameful, even by a Viking's standards –"

"No, Astrid, you're missing the point." The young woman's glare lifted a little at these words, and she gazed at him in confusion. "You're only seeing the darker side of what happened that day."

"What do you mean...?" It was clear that Astrid had little or no idea what he was talking about. Hiccup felt himself going a little red.

"You may have ratted me out to my father, but you showed afterwards how much it had hurt you to do it. After the fight, once all of the others had been called away, you came to me..."

Now it was Astrid's turn to blush. She tilted her head to one side and gave him a mesmerised look.

"Whatever happens now, it's my fault," she chanted, the words echoing through seven years of longing and hardship.

"I...I guess it was clear then that you weren't like the rest. You were ready to understand a dragon's true nature. You tried to apologise, but I pushed you away." Astrid opened her mouth to interject, but Hiccup held up his hand and continued.

"Don't worry; I no longer focus on the regret for what I did then – I've learned better. But the fact that you then followed me into the forest to try and convince me of your remorse should have told me instantly that you were...different." Astrid was beginning to grin, and this was slightly unnerving.

"Alright, I get the point –"

"Do you? What I'm trying to say here is that the potential for Berk to make peace with the dragons was there all along – inside of you." Astrid's smile faded a little.

"Are you trying to say that –"

"No, no! Gods, no!" Hiccup cut in, seeing the danger in what he had just said. "But you had sensed that there was perhaps some inkling of truth in what I was trying to teach everyone, and you even understood to some degree just how far one much stretch the fabric of society in order to achieve such goals. It was this, I believe, which helped the rest of the gang understand that if we didn't fly against the Red Death, then there was no hope for anyone."

Astrid was quiet for a moment, as though contemplating what he had just said. A slight grin crept slowly over her face, and she peered at Hiccup through suspicious eyes.

"Are you trying to make fun of me again?" Hiccup could only gape.

"No! Astrid, I'm trying to explain that, even without my help, _you_ would have eventually set things right between the Vikings of Berk and their once enemies!" Astrid chuckled. Women, Hiccup reflected, were remarkably good at twisting one's words so that their meaning became nothing but convolution.

"Anyway..." Hiccup sighed, his thoughts returning to darker state, "we all have things we're not proud of." Astrid sighed.

"What is it now?" she spoke with a hint of exasperation, almost justified. Extended conversation showed that Hiccup's emotions were more unstable than a torched longboat.

"Back in the Hollow Bastion –"

"No, Hiccup, not this again," the blond woman cut in angrily, though Hiccup saw a nervous hand go to her neck, as it had many times before. In his anger, the young man had imprinted a measure of unease upon Astrid's perception of him. And, try as he might to dispel it, Hiccup could still see that hint of fear in his lover's eyes when she looked at him.

* * *

_Tension._

Both Vikings had, by this stage, ceased their plodding back towards the village, and Hiccup had unconsciously placed the basket down by his feet in the small clearing where the two now stood. There was angst in the heart of each human, as each tried to grapple with the emotions troubling them, and bring them out into the light to face scrutiny. Hiccup's gaze had dropped to the thick carpet of pine needles beneath his feet, and there was the faintest hint of tears in Astrid's eyes. The only matters that ever made the young woman cry were those concerning Hiccup.

_Jealousy._

"Look," the brown-haired boy spoke at length, taking a step forward and placing a hand upon Astrid's shoulder, "we both have our issues – but the main problem, it seems, is accepting that the other cannot yield and give theirs up as easily as either of us would wish. I'm starting to think that you'll never truly see me as your equal..."

_Nor should he._

"No, I don't think I can. I've thought about it, Hiccup, I really have, and I honestly believe that you're simply a better person than me. Don't –" Astrid placed a hand over Hiccup's lips before the latter even had a chance to respond. "– Don't judge me for it, just accept that that's how it's going to be. I can do that...can you?"

_In a heartbeat._

Hiccup held her gaze for a few seconds, but then slowly nodded, his right hand taking hers and holding it to his chest.

_So close..._

"But there's still so much you don't know about me –" Astrid opened her mouth, her sadness vanishing in an instant to be replaced with pure frustration, but Hiccup's left hand now moved to her lips, silencing the young woman. "– And you need to accept that. There will come a time when I'm ready to speak of my past, and believe you me, there is a lot to tell...but not now, not yet." Astrid closed her eyes for a few seconds, clearly thinking deeply, but a moment later she looked back into the green of his, and returned his nod. Now taking his left hand in hers, Astrid took it to her heart, mirroring the boy's own action.

_Too close._

And there they stood, Hiccup and Astrid, each one touching the heart of the other in more than just the physical sense. But, as time seemed to stretch out to infinity, something snapped. He couldn't take it anymore.

Leaping out from the scrub with a ferocity he reserved only for the direst of circumstances, Toothless pounded towards the couple, his snarl of anger increasing instantly to a roar of rage. Although unsure of what he hoped to achieve, the black dragon knew this; for the sake of his master's soul, Hiccup and Astrid should not be.

Hiccup's agility, however, was not even diminished by the loss of a leg, and before Toothless was even ten metres from the two humans, the brown-haired boy had pulled Astrid around behind him and drawn his short sword. The Night Fury dug in his claws, coming to a violent halt which sent pine needles skittering off over the forest floor like stones on a mountain slope. Astrid now stood just off to Hiccup's left, her Viking training refusing to let a male shield her from danger; a true warrior.

"Toothless? What the Hel is wrong with you?" Once upon a time, this sentence had carried much humour and joy for the dragon and his boy, but now it was filled with a horrid mixture of anger, fear...and betrayal. Toothless snarled at the two of them, but directed his gaze at Astrid, glaring straight into the blue of hers. Astrid stared right back, her eyes filled with disbelief and confusion.

"Toothless! Bud, where have you –" But Toothless cut him off with a screech of anger, and began to pace in a wide circle around the couple. The message was surely clear.

"Toothless, why would you frighten us like this? What's going on?" The Night Fury paused, incensed that Astrid would speak directly to him. He growled again, still glaring at the young woman.

"_You can't be with Hiccup! The boy is better off on his own...with _me."

Hiccup's worried gaze had diminished somewhat as soon as he had realised that the black dragon's thoughts were being directed at the two of them. Sheathing his sword in a second, the young man took a few steps forward and held out his hand warily. Why he was at all frightened, Toothless could not tell – surely the two of them had been through enough that the bond of trust between them could not be weakened by something as clear in meaning as this...?

Irrelevant. Hiccup wished to communicate clearly, and Toothless would do nought but oblige. He moved forward and brought his head up to touch his master's hand like so many times before, and the link was created.

"_It's Astrid, isn't it?_" Hiccup fired off immediately, his anger resonating through Toothless' mind. "_Why can't you accept that I want to love again? Why can't you just let me try to live with ordinary humans once more?_" A simple question, and a simple answer.

"_I will not see you hurt again – Hiccup, every time this happens, a part of you dies inside –_"

"_So, once again you're insinuating that this love will end like the first? Does this village look like it is in danger of being burnt to the ground?_"

"_You know as well as I do that there will be retribution for the actions of these Vikings._"

"Our _actions, Toothless. You and I were just as much a part of this as any of the residents of Berk –_"

"_Once again, you speak of this village as though you are still not a part of it. Tell me, Hiccup, were does your heart really lie?_"

A moment's silence. Hiccup's eyes broke away and stared at the ground, while Astrid stood to one side, her form alert and her face full of concern.

"_I don't know._" Toothless could sense the truth in the young man's thoughts. "_But I do know that I need somewhere to belong, and this place is as good as any. I have friends, family, and loved ones, is that not enough?_"

Toothless severed the link so suddenly that event the mentally hardened Hiccup staggered backwards...to be supported by Astrid. Backing away slowly, Toothless tried desperately to crush the rising tide of emotions that sought to swamp his heart and mind with terrible grief.

Ever since his exile from the nest, the black dragon had believed himself to be unique – a single beast who was simply too different, too enlightened, too brave to live with the rest. Then he had met Hiccup, and this had only strengthened his notions of individuality, for they seemed to be true not only for his own species, but for the humans as well. The two of them should have spent the rest of their lives together, too different to live within their own kind, but just right for each other. Over the years, Toothless had become so accustomed to this idea, that the moment it became evident to be based upon fallacy, he couldn't handle it.

But that was just it. If Hiccup could believe in reintegration, in acceptance...in love, then why couldn't _he_?

Utterly terrified of his own thoughts, Toothless turned and fled.

* * *

Several days passed, and Hiccup didn't hear from his best friend. Life went on, though. Vikings and dragons went about their business, formed new bonds and strengthened existing ties. The village of Berk moved slowly onward towards a better future for both of the races that now called it home.

But without his lifelong friend, Hiccup could not be brave.

Even Astrid, who was by his side as often as would appear acceptable, could hardly make his days brighter, and Hiccup caught himself, at times, feeling totally alienated from the world in which he lived.

Then, almost a week after the confrontation in the forest, Hiccup had an idea. A wonderful, perfect idea. How had this not occurred to him before?

* * *

After hours and hours of slaving away over the furnace, Hiccup slumped upon the floor, his back resting against the main bench, the exhaustion of hard work mingling in his mind with satisfaction of a job well done – well, so he hoped.

There it was, done. The new tail-fin was as sleek and shiny as the old one, and far more aerodynamic. Despite his numerous earlier epiphanies, Hiccup had, at first, not thought to try to improve Toothless' harness. Then, almost a year ago, the young man had hit upon a remarkable idea, and the new design had immediately gone to paper. Only an incredibly detailed understanding of the Night Fury's flight mechanics had allowed Hiccup to conjure up such a masterpiece...but here it was, complete in its construction, its creator confident in his craft.

This fin required no harness. The prosthesis enabled independent flight, and would allow Toothless to return to the air on his own. And this was precisely why Hiccup had kept the design secret from his best friend.

From the moment Hiccup had stumbled upon this remarkable discovery, the design had been hoarded away from the eyes of its creator's best friend. Hiccup was utterly terrified by the thought that, upon learning of this newfound potential for the rejuvenation of free flight, Toothless would stop at nothing to throw off the burden of his human rider. It were as though the seven long years with the Night Fury by his side had taught the young man _nothing_.

Through their mutual dependence, the human and his dragon companion had grown past friendship to become closer than family, and now shared a bond stronger than any Hiccup had seen before.

Toothless' actions in the forest one week ago had proved as much.

The sudden scraping of wood upon rock made Hiccup look up, and his eyes traced an arc along the stone floor and up to the open door. The young man's efforts to rise from his slumped position on the floor proved very quickly to be in vain, and he resigned himself to becoming a seat for a _very _nice –

"Hiccup, what have you been making?" Straight to the point, as ever. "I left you alone all this morning, as I figured it must have been very important. You haven't even taken a single break!" Astrid quickly closed the blacksmith door and crossed the distance between them in only a few rapid strides. However, instead of adopting her usual, intimate approach for when they were alone, the blond Viking lowered herself down onto the warm, hard floor, sat right next to Hiccup, and waited patiently for an answer.

Her patience was both necessary and rewarding, for after almost a minute, Hiccup sighed, and began to speak.

"I've been reconstructing Toothless' fin. It's done now...he'll be able to fly."

"I figured as much," Astrid replied with a smile, her head tilted to one side as she stared at the young man. "But you've only been at it for a day, how is it that you're done so soon? What about the harness?" Her eyes flicked rapidly around the workshop, before coming back to rest upon Hiccup's face, their soft blue bringing soothing to his anguished heart.

"He doesn't need the harness now," Hiccup spoke glumly, "the new design will allow him to fly without burden." Astrid's eyebrows shot up at the revelation of this new technology, but the brown-haired boy saw the suspicion in her gaze at his use of the word 'burden'. He sighed.

"I was going to take it out into the forest, perhaps up a mountain, and wait for him to come to me. I feel like I should, but..." he paused, confirmed his own thoughts, "I'm not sure I really know what he wants."

"You're his best friend, Hiccup, and the closest thing he really has to a family. The way the other dragons talk about Toothless...it's nothing explicit, yet it's so obvious that he's a bit of an outcast."

"Hrm." Hiccup had nothing better to say.

This, however, was something of an affront to the young woman who had turned up at just the right time and with just the right things to say to instil hope into Hiccup's heart once more.

"Hey," Astrid said lightly, her expression filling with that cheeky look that Hiccup knew all too well, "everything will be alright in the end. And if it's not alright, then it's not the end."

"Yeah..." Hiccup replied quietly, a smile of simple happiness creeping over his face. It would be alright. There was hope, now.

Astrid was still looking at him, and out of the corner of his eye, Hiccup saw her brush a wayward strand of hair out of her eyes – he knew exactly what was coming, and would do nothing to prevent it.

Leaning over, Astrid kissed his cheek, as if seeking permission. Was he really alright? Was he ready to –

Yes, he most certainly was.

Hiccup wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling the young woman closer, and took her hands in his. Their lips met, and in no time at all, a full half an hour had passed, with the two simply exploring each others' intimacy boundaries...and discovering that, with one another, there simply weren't any.

* * *

"Mmmm..." The blonde flicked her hair out of her face once more, and Hiccup felt his passions rise further. It seemed that Astrid could do almost anything, and Hiccup would be taken by the fires of his desire for her.

"Do you think our parents know we're doing this –?" Astrid began, but was immediately cut off as Hiccup pressed his lips to hers again.

"Do you think our parents _care_ we're doing this?" he replied after a few more moments of pleasure, and Astrid could only laugh.

"Probably not – certainly not my mother, anyway...the last time I checked, she was all for us trying out whatever we wanted..." She ended the sentence with an enticing purr, and it was all he could do to hold himself back. Such shenanigans on this stony, uneven floor had the potential to be quite painful. But then again –

"Guys, what...I don't even..." Hiccup and Astrid both jumped at the sound of another voice. Neither of them had even heard the door open, but there, with the light of the outside world streaming in around him, stood Fishlegs, his mouth gaped wide. The loving couple quickly retrieved their hands, placing their arms back into respectable positions, but the damage was done, and in merely a few painful seconds, Fishlegs' gaze had transformed into a smile of pure joviality.

"Hahaha! I knew it! I KNEW IT!" he screamed, and without another word, turned and fled out of the building.

"Fishlegs! FISHLEGS! GET BACK HERE, YOU SCUMBAG!" Astrid roared, her peaceful nature gone in a flash and replaced by the vicious Viking nature that Hiccup knew so well. In only a second, she had vanished out the door after her quarry. Prising himself up off the floor, Hiccup marched purposefully over to the entrance, wishing to the gods that his strength and speed would return soon. Once by the door, however, he was treated to the hilarious sight of Astrid spear tackling her bulky victim, clamping a firm hand over his blabbering mouth, and dragging him off into an alleyway to one side, pausing only to give Hiccup a grin that said plainly "_I'll deal with you later_". Hiccup chuckled, closed the door, and returned to his workbench. Fishlegs wouldn't talk, Astrid would see to that.

Everything seemed alright, really. Berk was fast becoming one of the most peaceful and prosperous villages of the north, with Vikings and dragons once more living harmoniously, as they had so long ago...

And he, Hiccup could not be more blessed. With a place of safety within the village, friends and family to take care of him and a loved one to soothe his heart, it seemed that he was finally home.

All that remained was to find his best friend.

To find Toothless.

* * *

_This doesn't quite conclude the trilogy. I will be writing an epilogue, and the focus should be obvious. I've also tried to lay the foundations for future stories...subtle hints, references to Hiccup's past, and so on and so forth. I have it all planned out, and just need to find the motivation to write it all up.  
Wish me luck!_

_As usual, any critique, ideas, e.t.c. would be greatly appreciated, and I'm really hoping people will have little suggestions for the sequels...it may help me to find that inspiration! I'll be trying to use my own storyline, with entries from some of the other HtTYD media, such as the short films, the T.V. series, and so on._

_Cheers,  
Lumpyness._


	11. Epilogue

_Here we are then, at the end, at last._

* * *

_Epilogue_

Step after step, Hiccup dragged himself further and further up the stony slopes, his physical form throbbing with the aches and pains of an arduous journey.

Astrid had initially insisted on coming with him, but had been easily dissuaded once Hiccup had described the fundamentals of his relationship with Toothless a little more deeply and emotionally.

After that, she had accepted fully that this was something that the young man needed to do alone.

The trouble was, Hiccup wasn't even sure that it was the right thing to do any more.

His legs might have been ready to give way at any moment, but his mind was racing as fast as the winds around him, with thoughts chasing each other round so fast as to create a twister of contorted logic strains and demented notions.

However, in spite of everything he told himself, and everything he then thought to convince himself otherwise, there was once constant in the whole mix.

Hiccup would do anything to keep his best friend.

It was that simple.

Ceasing his steady plodding, the young man leaned against a large boulder and stared back down the scree slope and off into the distance.

The northern horizon was pure white with Odin's ice, and the far ocean faded slowly from blue to grey, before finally becoming one with the majestic infinity of Valhalla.

Much nearer lay the town of Berk, with countless plumes of comforting smoke rising from many fewer chimneys...

The smoke of dragons was far purer than that released by the impure combustion of old trees, and rose up as isotropic, grey streamers to mingle with the sooty remnants of Viking comfort.

Hiccup's mind was going berserk.

Never before had he mentally described a scene with such wordy complexity.

All the more reason to find Toothless and put his aching skull at rest, the boy thought wearily.

Many times over had the past showed him the dangers of excessive thinking.

Clambering up to stand atop the smoothly spherical stone which sat so lonely on everlasting slopes, Hiccup paused to place his burden down to one side, before sitting atop the great boulder.

This were surely as good a place as any to await his friend's return.

And wait he did.

As the Sun rose higher and higher in the sky, her intense rays beating down upon the land with a ferocity almost unheard of for even the later springs months, Hiccup simply sat, pondering life's mysteries.

The young man had, during his seven year exile, had plenty of time to consider the universe and everything that resides within it.

Toothless had been there, to usher him further and further, gently guiding his thoughts down the right paths, until finally the young man had the whole of the existence laid out before him in the form of nothing but ideas – simple words.

Thought experiments combined with fact and observation to produce a functional, yet still beautiful model of the physical realm, which was then introduced to life's emergent qualities; emotions, opinions, ethics, and morals.

Suddenly, everything had been redefined, right before his very eyes.

Actions which, in the past, had seemed right and just, were now immoral and cancerous – and, of course, the complete opposite was suddenly true for countless scenarios, too.

Only religion lay beyond his grasp – the realm of the Gods was too difficult to justify to himself, yet too difficult to simply let go; and why should he?

The journey of discovery which he and Toothless had shared now meant more to him than almost anything else in the whole world – and Hiccup wanted that back.

He _needed _it.

Finally, around midday, as the heat grew to intense levels, the young man's patience was rewarded.

A lithe black form was spotted winding its way up the mountain slope, darted from rock to rock, making no effort to conceal itself.

Hiccup stood up, his face stretching into an uncontrollable smile.

His best friend.

As he neared his rider, the Night Fury's pace slowed to a steady plod, until finally he reached five metres from the boy at nothing more than walking pace, and simply stopped, and sat back on his haunches.

His ears were pricked, his deep, emerald eyes were wide and curious, and his head was tilted very slightly to one side.

And in that moment, Hiccup was taken by the memories...

This was exactly the face that Toothless had made when Hiccup had approached him in the clearing off Raven's Point for the very first time, all those years ago.

There was apprehension, true, but it was dwarfed by the curiosity of a dragon seeking company.

"Hey bud," Hiccup spoke, still smiling, and Toothless did his very best to mirror his master's grin; the young man could barely constrain his laughter.

"I've got something for you," he continued, stooping down to retrieve this most prized possession from the warm stone upon which it lay. "It's...well, you can see, can't you? "

As Toothless' snout moved forwards to examine this new contraption, Hiccup held it up to shield his face, the guilt raging in his heart now soaring to almost unbearable levels.

Very soon, they would breach the walls of their emotional prison, and Hiccup would snap once more.

"Are you wondering how it works?" the young man spoke with a grimace, and Toothless cooed softly, before pressing his nose to his rider's hand.

"_I am._" A simple enough answer.

"_It's...it's a remodelled tailfin. I completed the designs for it a few years ago, after having watched the way you flew for long enough for me to understand the mechanics._

_It..._" Hiccup paused, and shut his eyes tightly before continuing. "_It should allow you to fly alone.__ You'll no longer need the harness...or a rider._"

Toothless drew back, his eyes still wide with curiosity.

There was nothing malicious there, no hint of anger or regret.

He then turned just enough to present his tail to the man upon whom he relied for so long to fly; the Night Fury now wished to be set free.

Now shaking a little, Hiccup bent down and fastened to prosthetic fin to the black dragon's tail, slotted it into the familiar position, and closed the additional straps which would allow self-regulated flight.

Straightening back up, he took several steps back, and simply stared at his friend.

Toothless' reaction was to be expected, for only a few seconds after he was reunited potential to fly, the Night Fury blasted off into the sky as fast as he could possibly go.

Hiccup was almost knocked back off the boulder by the sheer force of the air currents generated by the black dragon's vertical takeoff.

Sitting back against the baking warmth of the stony slope, the young man watched his steed go wild once more.

The small black dot that was Toothless was now so high up...Hiccup could see him twirling and whirling through the air, his patterns as erratic as his mind must be.

Free at last.

Hiccup closed his eyes, and began to cry.

But only a minute later, a sudden crunching sound and the rush of air that accompanied it told the Viking that his dragon had landed once more, very close by.

This was _not _expected.

Quickly picking himself up off the ground, Hiccup wiped the tears from his eyes and stared curiously at the Night Fury.

Toothless had landed back right where he had been before, but now his face was different.

The dragon's eyes were soft and bulging, and it only took Hiccup a second to realise that his best friend had also been crying.

"T-Toothless?" he stuttered, stumbling a little as he walked forward.

The Night Fury bowed his head and closed his eyes, before taking a single step forward and meeting Hiccup's embrace.

And there they stood for some time, human and dragon, forever friends.

"_It did not feel right,_" the black dragon intoned at length, and Hiccup chuckled. "_Flying, free from the physical burden that is you is one thing...but flying happily is something else _entirely_.__ I cannot believe that had ever thought about leaving...and even now that you present me with this gift, that you grant me free flight once more, all I want is to share that joy with you._"

"_Then we'll be free together, then?_" Hiccup asked, hold the Night Fury's saddened gaze.

"_Together,_" Toothless replied simply, before trying once more to smile.

Hiccup burst out laughing.

"You're never going to stop trying to get that right, are you?" He spoke, moving backwards and wiping his eyes once more.

His laugh was returned by the Night Fury's own deep guffaw.

But then the black dragon lowered himself down to the ground, and a rush of excitement took Hiccup's breath away.

"Time to fly," he breathed, before stepping forwards and climbing up onto the dragon's neck.

_This _was intense; never before had he flown upon a dragon without having to steer it.

A second later, and they were off, screaming up through the air.

The Night Fury's long, enforced abstinence from flying had done nothing to his fitness or prowess, this much was obvious.

Hiccup hugged the scales and held on tight, staring around with joy.

This was it.

As Toothless finally alighted back where they had taken off, Hiccup slid from his back and sank to his knees, breathing heavily.

It had been so long..._too _long.

"Wow," he spoke at length, staring at the ground, his heart pounding ferociously, "I didn't expect that to be quite so – Toothless, what are you doing?"

The Night Fury's behaviour had suddenly changed.

Having brought it round in front of him, Toothless was staring intently at the tip of his tail, his eyes now filled with suspicion and anger.

Hiccup knew exactly what he was thinking, and what was about to happen...and he was neither able to, nor did he want to do anything to stop it.

For the first few seconds, the Night Fury did nothing but scrape his tail across the stones.

But then, with a few short, sharp whacks, he shattered the metal frame, tore the woven leather, and finally flicked his tail so hard that the ruined prosthesis soared a hundred feet before smashing down upon the stones of the mountain slope.

And that was that.

Hiccup sighed.

"I'll get to work rebuilding the old one then, shall I?" he chuckled, before walking up to place a hand upon the smug dragon's nose.

"_It might take a while..._"

"_I can wait,_" replied Toothless simply.

Turning back to look down the rugged slopes and back towards the Viking village of Berk, something dawned on Hiccup.

"Toothless," he said irritably, "couldn't you have waited until we were back at Berk before smashing that fin?" The Night Fury's apologetic gaze now carried only one message – "_Oops._"

Hiccup sighed once more.

"Come on, bud, let's go home."

"_Home,_" the Night Fury chimed in happily, before the two of them set off down the stony mountain side and back towards Berk, best friends once more.

* * *

_Well, my friends, I hope you enjoyed the journey, for it is now at an end.  
_

_I had plans to do some sequels to this, and have almost layed the foundations already...but my willpower has drained somewhat since those ideas first came up. I'm now deviating into all kinds of other fanfiction, from Avater: the Last Airbender to Doctor Who to Stargate to Warhammer 40K to a mish-mash of my own from various sci-fi universes._

_I was hoping that someone with a bit of talent would be game enough to take up with this story where I've left off...I can send this person all of the material I have - that includes a full plan for the first and primary sequel, as well as numerous sheets of notes on what to remember within each chapter._

_Any takers? At all? If you're interested, get in touch!_

_But for now, tschuess to all!_

_Lumpyness._


End file.
